Hate To Love You
by evgrrl09
Summary: It's been three months since Garcia and Morgan have spoken. Will they figure out how to fix it before it's too late? M/G
1. What's Happened To Them?

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**So here's my newest M/G story…more angst again :) It's my specialty! Hope you enjoy :) Please review and leave me your thoughts!**

"Get the hell out of my office!"

"Why are you insulting my girlfriend?"

The sound of something crashing made JJ pause and look up from the file she was reading and she rose swiftly from her chair to start towards the noise that was very clearly coming from Penelope's office. She hurried towards the lair and stopped short when she ran into Rossi.

"Dave?" she asked with her brow furrowed in concern. "What's going on?"

He shook his head. "Morgan and Garcia are fighting again," he muttered in exasperation. "What's going on with the two of them? One minute they were totally in tune with the other, the next they hate each other's guts. And neither of them are saying anything to anyone about what's crawled up their asses."

She rubbed her temples, but the sound of Penelope's door opening made her look up sharply. Out stumbled Derek Morgan and a coffee mug whizzed by his head, smashing into the wall and splitting into a dozen pieces. A very angry Penelope Garcia was now stalking out towards him and glaring at Morgan. "Come in here again and I'll make damn sure something hits you next time!"

"Garcia, the next snide comment you make about Jackie is going to send me so far overboard that you won't want to be within ten feet of me when it happens!" he thundered.

"Maybe if you told her to stop harassing _me_ then this wouldn't be a problem!" she shrieked back.

By now the hallway had people streaming into the hallway to see what the commotion was, including Hotch. Hotch stomped towards the quarreling pair and put his hands on his hips. "Both of you need to end this now. I will be speaking to both of you separately when you have calmed down," he said in a dangerously low voice. When Penelope and Derek continued to glare at each other, he added more harshly, "_Now_!"

Penelope stalked back into her office while Derek went in the direction of his. Everyone continued to stare at them until they heard the slamming of not one, but two office doors. One look from Hotch sent the bystanders scrambling for their original posts. Rossi and JJ waited silently until they were alone with Hotch in the corridor. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I am not looking forward to these conversations," he muttered. "Neither of them has budged the last three months on anything."

"I'm really worried about Penelope," JJ said sadly. "She's been acting terrible lately. She even yelled at the barista at the coffee shop…Garcia never yells at anyone. Unless they deserve it, that is."

Rossi nodded. "Right," he agreed. "But I agree with JJ. I'm really worried about her."

Hotch was going to speak again but they were interrupted by a perky voice. "Hi BAU gang!" They all turned around to see Jackie, Derek's latest fling, clicking towards them in her four inch heels. In her arms she was holding a paper bag which apparently held lunch for her and Derek. She was extremely beautiful with soft blonde hair and twinkling blue eyes and a pair of breasts that nearly rivaled Penelope's.

Everyone thought she was a substitute for the one Derek truly wanted.

JJ smiled thinly at Jackie. "Uh, hi Jackie," she said with an awkward wave. None of Derek's teammates enjoyed Jackie. She was worse to them than Tamara Barnes. "What's going on?"

"Well, I'm just bringing Derek some lunch before I have to conduct the final walk through of the gallery before the opening tonight then I have to get my dress picked up," she babbled. "I hope you're all still planning on coming to it tonight?" She batted her eyelashes.

The three nodded. "Yes, we'll be there," Hotch said grudgingly for the three of them.

"Oh wonderful!" she chirped. "And Spencer, Alex, and Penelope will be there as well?"

JJ almost bristled at the way Jackie said Penelope's name, like she was a piece of garbage she'd stepped on in her three inch high heels. "Yes, we'll all be there," she said coolly. "Thank you for the invitation."

"No problem," Jackie said with a grin. Her eyes caught sight of Penelope exiting her office once more with red eyes. JJ could almost swear she saw her smirk. If she could, she would shoot it off with her gun. "Oh _Penelope_?" she cooed.

Penelope looked up and wiped her eyes hurriedly. "Yeah, Jackie?" she asked coarsely.

"Do wear something nice tonight for the gallery opening, dear," she said with a sugary sweet smile. "It's a very posh event and there will be a lot of people who are of great importance in DC. I think even a few Congressmen will be there."

Smiling back tightly, Penelope said, "Oh, I have the perfect dress for the occasion. Don't you worry, Jackie."

Then she was gone and around the corner.

Jackie huffed. "Well, I just don't know what her problem could be," she said innocently. "Well, no matter. I'll just go see Derek I guess."

"You do that," Rossi said coldly as Jackie waved at them.

"Toodles!" she called.

JJ scowled. "God, I hate that woman!" she spat. "And the way she treats Penelope. That's what pisses me off the most!"

"Don't get me started either," Rossi said, shaking his head. "If Morgan wants Garcia, he needs to date her and not a substitute. It's just pathetic. I oughta kick his ass…Italian style."

"My biggest question is how much are they're fighting," Hotch said, crossing his arms stoically over his chest. "This has been going on for three whole months right now. Neither of them has budged to anyone on what happened. She hasn't said a word to you, JJ?" he asked.

She shook her head sadly. "No," she murmured. "Even when she got hammered that one night last week she didn't say a word about what happened. She just mumbled about how much she hated Derek."

"They're best friends," Rossi muttered. "What could've happened to them?"

XXXXX

Penelope retrieved the papers from the printer that she needed and looked them over to make sure she had everything she needed. Nodding decisively, she made her way back to her office. Groaning internally, she remembered Hotch would be coming to have a chat with her. That wasn't something she was looking particularly forward to.

What was worse was the gallery opening that very night. JJ told her it would be good for her to get out and about, telling her to buy an extremely sexy dress and show Morgan that she didn't care about their feud.

Sighing, she finished working on her search for Hotch while bracing herself for his lecture that was coming.

XXXXX

When Jackie entered Derek's office with lunch in tow, he was so not in the mood to hear her incessant ranting about the gallery opening. He had no interest in the whole event and he most certainly had no interest in listening to his girlfriend talk rapidly about what she was going to wear.

He knew he was going to have to get rid of her before Hotch came over to shout at him about his behavior earlier with Penelope. He wasn't looking forward to it at all.

Grunting, he rubbed his face before smiling tiredly at his girlfriend and accepting her peck on the lips.


	2. Searching For The Truth

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Wow! Thank you guys so much for the reviews! I'm glad you're enjoying it so far :) This one will be pretty angsty, so buckle down for the ride. Never fear though. My obsession with happy endings is still very strong :) So I hope you enjoy!**

Hotch didn't know which one to start with, Derek or Penelope. His choice was made infinitely easier when he saw that Jackie still had not left Derek's office. Currently the woman was dabbing at his cheek with a napkin and Derek was laughing at something she'd said.

_Guess I'm starting with Garcia,_ Hotch thought to himself as he kept walking past Morgan's office towards Garcia's.

He knocked on the door to Penelope's office and heard her call out a sniffly, "Come in."

Hesitantly he entered and sat down in her spare chair.

"Hey Garcia," he said softly.

"Sir, I'm sorry about that fight," she said, turning around to face him. Her eyes were red and bloodshot. "I didn't mean for it to get out of hand and I certainly didn't mean to throw things."

He tilted his head in concern. "Garcia, I don't mean to pry by any means, but this thing going on between you and Morgan is starting to get in the way of your work. If something is going on, you can tell me. I know that you haven't said anything to JJ, so I know you probably won't want to tell me, but I just thought you should know."

Her eyes went blank and she looked like she was lost in thought about something.

XXXXX

"_Morning Baby Girl," Derek said, wrapping his arms around Penelope from behind and kissing her neck. "How are you this fine morning?"_

_Penelope giggled. She was sitting up in Derek's bed, a sheet wrapped around her upper half. He'd just woken up and the warmth of his arms around her felt warm and comforting. "I'm feeling wonderfully…sore." She laughed the last word. Once Derek had returned home from the team's latest case the previous night, he'd come straight to her apartment and proceeded to make love to her the entire night._

_He purred against her neck. "Hmm," he said. "Hopefully you're a little satisfied too."_

"_I'm _very_ satisfied, mon cher," she said, leaning her head back against his shoulder. Sighing, she took his hand in hers and gave it a squeeze, holding it tightly. "Hot Stuff?"_

"_What's up, Baby?" he asked. "You okay?"_

_She nodded. "Oh, yeah Baby Boy," she murmured. "I'm fine. I was just wondering…when are we going to tell the team about us? This has been going on for six months now and I wonder when we can tell them. We've done all sorts of the normal things couples do; we've gone to a romantic beach weekend, we've gone to dinner at fancy places, we've had makeup sex."_

_He grinned shamelessly. "Yeah, we have had all that stuff," he growled, nibbling at her earlobe. "When do you want to tell them, sweetheart?"_

_Turning to face him, she smiled coyly and proceeded to straddle his waist. Kissing his face all over, she nipped at his bottom lip and said, "I do suppose it can wait. I'm in the mood for a morning romp."_

_Laughing, he kissed her deeply. "Let's do this thing."_

XXXXX

"Garcia, you still in there?" Hotch asked, waving his hand around in front of her.

Penelope snapped out of her daze and met Hotch's eyes again. "Sorry sir," she mumbled tiredly. "I don't know what's going on with me. But I promise I'll think about your offer and not fight with Morgan anymore."

He looked at her with concern and said, "Garcia, you've been fighting with Morgan for months now and we're all really worried about you both. I think if you just tell us what you two are fighting about and let us help fix it –"

She cut him off. "Sir, there's nothing that you or anyone else can do to fix this," she said, rather coldly. He was shocked at how harsh her eyes were. Penelope Garcia was one of the kindest women he knew. Whatever had happened between her and Morgan had given her a new edge. "I've almost finished the search you wanted done," she added, turning around to face her computers once more.

Hotch rose with a sigh. He supposed the conversation was over. As he made his way out of her office, his ears caught the sound of her dry sob that escaped her throat. He bowed his head and shook his head, hoping there would be something to help her cheer up.

Next he had to go to Morgan's office and talk to him. Hopefully Jackie would be gone. And even if she wasn't, he'd probably kick her out. No one in the BAU liked her, particularly JJ who made sure her opinion was known. He sighed, wanting to get to the bottom of the problem, more for Penelope's sake as she seemed the most miserable. Derek just seemed to be lapping up enjoyment from his bitchy girlfriend. Striding towards his office, he knocked swiftly on the door, noticing that Jackie was still in the room, but not caring.

"Morgan, do you have a minute?" he asked hardly.

Morgan nodded. "Sure thing Hotch," he said.

"It needs to be in private," Hotch added, flicking his eyes to Jackie.

"Well, I need to use the restroom anyway," Jackie said obliviously, rising and heading out the office door with a smile on her face. "I'll let you boys talk."

Hotch shut the door behind him and turned to glare at him. "Morgan, what did you do to Garcia?" he demanded. "Don't try and say the two of you weren't in a relationship together. I didn't know while it was going on, but the behavior you two are exhibiting is clear enough. And the display of emotion I just saw in Penelope's office tells me even more. Now, what the hell did you do to her?"

Morgan's eyebrows shot up and his jaw instantly hardened. "Is that what she told you? That _I_ ended our relationship? What else did she tell you? That I cheated on her with Jackie while we were still together? I've got news for you Hotch: I met Jackie after the fact. I _loved_ Penelope! I still _love_ Penelope and she is the only woman I have ever loved! It was her who ended our relationship, it was her who told me that we were over! So don't you dare come in here and insinuate that I left her. I wanted to marry her; I bought the ring and was ready to propose when she dropped the bomb. So don't you dare come in here and insinuate that I left her. She broke my heart, not the other way around."

Hotch's eyes were still wide well several moments after Morgan's confession. He was not lying. There was no way in Hell he was lying. But the emotion behind Penelope's actions showed devastation. True, unadulterated heartbreak.

So what had happened that caused them to go over the edge?

XXXXX

_Derek was fidgeting when he entered the door to Penelope's apartment. In his jacket pocket, he had the little velvet box containing the diamond ring he'd just bought for Penelope. They still hadn't told the team, but he couldn't wait for this. He loved this woman with all his heart and he couldn't imagine spending the rest of his life without her._

_He smiled the moment he saw the lovely woman who'd stolen his heart. She was still in her work clothing, minus the three inch heels she'd been wearing._

"_Hey Baby Girl," he said nervously. The blood was roaring in his ears and his heart was pounding in his chest. He'd never been more nervous in his entire life._

_When she looked at him there were tears in her eyes and immediately he was by her side, his nervousness forgotten. He put his hands on her cheeks and tilted her face to look up at his. "Penelope, what's wrong? Are you okay?"_

_She took both his hands in hers and kissed both his palms. Her tears hit his hands and he became even more concerned. Finally she gave a shaky sigh and murmured, "Derek, we need to talk."_

_He assumed it was bad news. Maybe he would wait until she'd delivered it to him so that his proposal would cheer her up._

_Moving them over to the couch, he gently helped her sit down and said, "Okay, Baby. Let's talk."_

_She took a deep breath and was silent several moments before continuing. "Derek, we need to break up," she whispered hoarsely. She wasn't even looking him in the eye. Her head was bent so far down he couldn't even see her face._

_All the blood drained from Derek's face and if his skin had been lighter he would've looked ashen. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His whole world started to crumble immediately, along with his heart which was dissolving to ash in his chest. Stammering, he said, "Wh – what?"_

_She finally looked up at him. Her eyes were glazed over with tears and he almost couldn't believe it was real. "Derek, I'm sorry," she murmured. "I – I fell in love with someone else. I can't – I can't keep lying about it to me…or to you. You deserve the best in the world and I can't give that to you."_

_He still hadn't spoken. Was it because he couldn't believe what she had said? Was it because what she said might be true? Looking her directly in the eye, he finally said, "You don't love me?"_

_She nodded, tears streaming down her cheeks._

"_Then why are you crying?"_

"_Because I hurt you," she said. "I – I never cheated on you, but I worry that if I stay any longer I might. And I would never be able to live with myself if that happened."_

_He glared at her. "So our whole relationship was just a lie?" he growled. "The entire time you just lied to me? Every single time?"_

_She bowed her head again. "I'm so sorry," she said._

_Rising from the sofa, he shook his head and started for the door. "Goodbye Penelope," he grunted, his heart completely broken. As he closed the door, he heard the beginnings of her sobbing._

_As he made his way back to his car, he fingered the box in his pocket and took it out. He opened the box and stared at the ring that sparkled beneath the street light. Rubbing his devastated face, he shut the box and threw it into the bushes._

**Sorry about the angst :( More surprises in the next ones which I'm trying to punch out really quick to not keep you guys waiting!**


	3. What Did I Do Wrong?

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**I'm sorry I kept you waiting my pretties! I know I'm killing you…but I'm good at it. Angst is more of my thing. Hope you enjoy this chapter (we get some more info!) and THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS!**

Penelope pulled up to the gallery she'd promised JJ she would go to in order to get out for a little while. It was apparently a very exclusive event that Jackie had organized and she was wearing something that hopefully was acceptable for the bitch. Her dress was a curve-hugging red number that put her chest on display and hugged her body. Her hair was pulled up in a wavy ponytail that allowed soft tendrils to fall in her face. A pair of dangling earrings hung from her ears and she wore a brightly colored head piece on the top of her head. Instead of her glasses she was wearing her contacts.

But despite how good she looked, she felt terrible.

She hated that she was fighting with Derek. But she knew he had every right to hate her guts right now for what she'd done to him, for what she'd put him through. After he'd shut the door to her apartment – he hadn't even slammed it, just shut it firmly – she spent the rest of the week, sobbing on her couch and letting her heart bleed out all over her body until she felt like there was nothing left to cry out.

All in all, she hated herself. She deserved every bit of pain she was going through.

And she hadn't even told Derek the truth, the thing he deserved most to hear. Instead she'd gone the easy way out and lied. She wasn't deserving of Derek's love. Not after her stupid mistake.

She was arriving at Jackie's part and gallery opening at least fifteen minutes late and it was already bustling with people. Soft jazz music mixed with the chatter of people and waiters floated around with trays of crystal flutes of champagne. Anxiously Penelope looked around for the rest of the BAU – sans Derek, of course – and when she found Blake she exhaled a breath of pure relief. Finally someone she knew.

"Blake!" she said, hurrying towards her frantically. "Thank God I found you!"

Blake looked at her with amusement on her face and started to lead her towards the rest of the team. They were all in the corner, drinks in hand and all of them looking very uncomfortable.

"There you are, PG!" JJ said, thrusting her glass of champagne into Will's hand and throwing her arms around her. "We were wondering when you were going to show up. And you're wearing the dress!" She beamed. "You look great!"

Rossi grinned in agreement. "You do look great, Kitten," he said.

"Aww, thanks Rossi," she said with a sweet smile that didn't quite meet her eyes. "Have I missed anything?"

Blake rolled her eyes. "If you count Jackie screeching at the poor waiters in the kitchen, then yes," she grumbled.

"Huh," Penelope said stiffly. "That would've been a sight for my poor ears." He eyes glanced around the room. There so many rich people looking at the obscenely expensive pieces of mediocre art. They were all dressed in their fine cocktail dresses and mingling with each other, clinking glasses as they went. It didn't much bother her until she found Derek and her heart started to ache in her chest cavity. He looked so handsome in his suit with – was that the tie she'd given him for his forty second birthday! – a broad grin on his face as Jackie, who was clinging to his arm introduced him to someone posh. Jackie was wearing a black cocktail dress and a pair of high black heels, looking absolutely fabulous and red-carpet worthy.

Sighing, she said, "Well, I'm going to go get a drink. I noticed the open bar and think I could use a drink. How else am I going to get through the night?" Her joke fell on the sympathetic eyes of her team members and she waved slightly before taking off, unable to stand their looks of obvious pity.

At the bar, she flagged down the bartender and said tiredly, "Get me a Jack and Coke. Throw some cherries in there too."

"Coming up darling," he said with a wink.

As she sat down at the makeshift bar, she rubbed her forehead tiredly. She didn't know how much more of this she could take. The secret was burning up inside her and with each moment that she didn't tell anyone she got worse and worse.

"So where's your _boy toy_?" a deep voice almost snarled behind her.

She didn't even bother to look up; she knew exactly who was behind her. Her drink came and she nodded gratefully at the bartender, taking a sip before stirring her straw in it. She watched the ice twirl in the alcohol and took another gulp before putting the glass down.

"Who?" she muttered.

"You know, the man you were so afraid you would cheat on me with?" he growled, sitting down next to her. The scent of his cologne filled her nose and it almost became too hard for her to function. She could just bask in his scent all day. But then when she thought about it, he was wearing the cologne she'd bought him…the cologne she'd bought him right before…

"Are you even listening to me, Garcia?" he snapped again.

"No, I guess not," she murmured. "What were you saying?"

"I was asking you where your new boyfriend is?" he snapped. "The one you're so in love with that you had to leave me because you thought it was better for me."

"Oh," she said. She was making sure not to meet his eyes because she knew if she did, she would burst into tears and break his heart even more than she already had. She had to spare him from even more hurt. "He left me," she lied.

"Well isn't that ironic?" he laughed bitterly. There was cruelty in his laugh, something she'd never heard in his voice in the entire eight, almost nine years she'd been his best friend. Internally she flinched; externally she remained emotionless.

Suddenly her upper arm was grabbed roughly and she was being yanked from the bar. She looked at him with shock and not until they were in a back corner corridor near the alley exit did she find her voice. "Morgan! What is wrong with you?"

He pulled her through the alley door and glared at her with such ferocity she was actually scared of him. She tried backing against the wall of the building, but ran out of room when he stalked towards her.

"What is wrong with _me_?" he demanded. "Are you honestly asking that question? There never was another man! Was there?"

She blinked at him, her lower lip trembling.

"Answer me!" he roared.

Flashes of what had happened jolted before her eyes.

_Tripping over her own feet._

_Trying to grasp the railing._

_Tumbling down the steps and hitting the bottom with a thud._

_Blood._

She had to protect him from it. She had to keep lying. "No," she said unsteadily. "No, there _was_ another man! I thought I was in love with him, but he wasn't in love with me. I'm so sorry I hurt you, Morgan. I will never stop being sorry for it."

His eyes flashed dangerously and he shook his head. "You're lying," he snapped. "I know when you're lying _Baby Girl._"

The way he said her once beloved nickname stung. Finally the tears started to trickle down her cheeks.

Something in his face changed. He seemed to be calming down. "Penelope, what did I do wrong?" he asked, a hint of desperation entering his voice. "If I hurt you in any way, tell me. I didn't mean to. Please just tell me."

Her heart broke once again. He thought it was _his_ fault. "Derek," she began hoarsely. "It's nothing that you did. You are the most kind, compassionate, _loving_ man I have ever met –"

"Then what happened?" he begged. "What happened that you had to leave me?"

She looked away from him, unable to meet his eyes. The truth about what happened would kill him and make him hate her.

His strong hands cupped her face and she was forced to look at him. The love he felt for her was very clearly in his eyes, even after the months of arguing and fighting. It was almost too much for her to handle. She tried frantically to move her face away, but he held it firmly, yet gently in place.

"Stop fighting me," he whispered, his breath hot on her face. She could feel the heat of his body against hers and her nerves were on fire. "Please…"

And then his lips descended on hers and she couldn't stop the feelings from taking over or stop her lips from trembling beneath his.

**Don't worry…things get better and you will find out what happened to Penelope. Feel free to leave any guesses!**


	4. Revelation

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**I'm glad you guys are giving me such great feedback! Thank you so much :) Your guesses for what caused Penelope to leave Derek are all great, but there's one who's closest! Keep reading to find out who and bless you all again for your kind reviews.**

**Warning: This chapter is rated M.**

Derek had his arms wrapped tightly around Penelope's body and was kissing the life out of her. The months they'd been separated had only made his fiery desire for her even more passionate. Her sweet and powerful floral scent overtook him and he wanted nothing more than to devour her. The softness of her tongue melted against his mouth and he growled against her lips. His hands grasped her hips and he thrust her up against the brick wall of the alley. He broke the kiss to move down her neck and suckle on her pulse point, just where she liked it. A loud moan escaped her lips and she clutched him around the waist.

His arousal pushed against her hip and her moans increased as he held her even more tightly. He enveloped her with his body and reached behind her to the zipper on her dress. The dress slid down to reveal the breasts he'd always dreamed about. Her nipples had tightened to pointed buds and his mouth hungrily latched on to one of them, circling his tongue around it.

"Oh, God!" she cried, grasping his head and holding it tightly to her breasts. "Don't stop, Derek."

"I'll do whatever you want, Baby Girl," he murmured against her lily white skin. Trailing his tongue back up to her lips, he captured her in another kiss. In her ear, he growled, "Hook your leg around me."

She hooked her right leg around his hip and he reached beneath the skirt of her dress to tear off the panties she'd been wearing. Her fingers deftly pulled the zipper of his suit down, remembering exactly how they operated when making love against a wall. He grasped her other leg and pulled her up so that she slid down onto the length of his erection. A gasp escaped both of their mouths simultaneously and they wrapped themselves around each other, Penelope holding him around the shoulders and keeping her legs tightly around his hips and Derek burying his face against her neck.

Derek was being so gentle with her while at the same time trying to contain his fierce yearning for her. Never in his life would he want to hurt her and whatever he'd done to her to make her leave, he would spend the rest of his life trying to fix it. He hoped right now would prove to her how much he wanted her forgiveness for whatever it was he'd ever done.

"Oh my God, Derek!" she cried in ecstasy.

He knew when Penelope was about to climax and now was just that time. Her tight walls clenched around him and moments later his own release pulsed inside of her.

Derek held Penelope tightly to him and kept his face buried against her neck, never wanting the moment to end. True, the place wasn't the most romantic, but being with the woman he loved made everything perfect.

XXXXX

Penelope allowed Derek to set her unsteadily on her feet and zip her dress back up. He was busy retucking his shirt into pants and rezipping his fly. When they were both done fixing themselves, they looked at each other for a long moment, neither of them blinking or moving a muscle.

All over again Penelope felt the pain of hurting him.

_Tripping._

_Flailing._

_Falling._

_Landing._

_Pain._

When he put his hands on her face, she stood mutely. It was all too much. The pain was starting to take a hold of her again.

"Baby Girl?" he asked, snapping her out of her daze.

She looked up at him with misty eyes and nodded. "Yes?" she whispered.

"Are you going to say something?" The look in his eyes was that of a desperate man. He was still as in love with her as when she'd broken his heart all those months ago.

Taking both his hands, she nodded. "I need to take a moment first," she whispered hoarsely. "I'll find you."

He looked as if he didn't want to let her go, that he was afraid she wouldn't come find him. "Please promise me you'll come to me when you're done," he pleaded. "Please…"

She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "I promise," she said.

But first she had to figure out how to tell him the truth. And that would be the hardest thing for her to do.

XXXXX

"JJ?"

JJ was sitting in the quiet lounge area, checking for messages from the babysitter watching Henry. Penelope, her hair now disheveled and makeup runny, was looking at her with tears in her eyes. Immediately she rose from her seat and rushed to Penelope's side. Putting her hands on her shoulders, she murmured tenderly, "Penelope, what's wrong?"

Taking a deep and shaky breath, Penelope said, "It's time I tell you what really happened between Derek and I…and what _I_ did to screw it up."

XXXXX

_Penelope was dancing around in Derek's bedroom, her excitement shooting through the roof. Derek and the team were supposed to be returning in a few hours and she was ready to tell Derek the news that hopefully would change his life. One week ago she'd found out she was two months pregnant and she was going to tell Derek tonight during dinner. It was all planned out: first, she would cook him a meal and she would get him a beer from the fridge; he would ask her why she wasn't getting one for herself and she would tell him the news right before he took her upstairs and made passionate love to her._

_She couldn't stop smiling._

_Glancing at her watch, she sighed. She still had four hours until the plane even got in. She'd better get the food ready for them. As she went out of the room and towards the stairs, she took off her glasses to rub her face lightly, but before she could put her glasses back on, her feet mixed up and she started to tumble forward. Letting out a cry, she grasped wildly for the banister. Her vision was blurry as she'd dropped her glasses and she couldn't quite reach the banister with her fingertips and she ended up tumbling down the steps, banging and thudding down._

_She lay at the bottom of the steps for a moment, her head pounding from being hit so many times. Groaning, she made an attempt at sitting up, only to be wracked with pain in her abdomen. She clutched at her stomach wildly, gritting her teeth at the pain. It was then that she felt a gush of warm liquid rush between her legs._

_Tears, not from the pain, started to fall down her cheeks and she felt between her legs before looking at her fingers; they were covered in blood._

XXXXX

"_Baby Girl! I'm home!"_

_Penelope looked up from her seat on the couch. After she'd fallen, she frantically cleaned up the floor and tossed her clothes in the trash. The entire time she'd been sobbing. Then for an hour she'd sat and thought of how she was going to tell Derek that because of her tripping over her own feet, she'd lost their baby._

_He would hate her, she was sure of it. All he'd ever done was love her and she repaid him by making a dumb mistake and it had ended in a miscarriage._

_She couldn't tell him. She just couldn't. It would destroy him. He'd talked about wanting a whole horde of kids with her, but if he knew this…_

_So instead of being brave, she took the coward's way out, stood up, and pulled him into a kiss, trying to banish the memory of her baby, _their_ baby from her mind._

XXXXX

"Oh Penelope," JJ whispered after her friend had finished telling the story. JJ pulled her into her arms and held her tightly while she sobbed. She couldn't even begin to imagine the pain she was going through.

"It just started to eat me up inside, what I did," Penelope wept. "I couldn't face him every day and not see our baby! And because I tripped, I killed that baby! I just couldn't tell him the truth and destroy him even more. He would hate me if he knew what happened…hate me!" She clung to JJ like a life raft while she cried. JJ moved her hand gently up and down her back, trying to soothe her.

When her sobs turned to sniffles, JJ murmured, "Penelope…you need to tell him the truth. He deserves it. And so do you. You don't deserve all the unhappiness you're putting yourself through. That miscarriage was _not_ your fault. Do you hear me? You fell, it could happen to any woman. And Derek…if he knew, yes, he would be devastated, but not as devastated as now when he's lost you. That man could never and would never hate you. Plain and simple. He loves you so, so much, Penelope. You're his Baby Girl."

"But JJ, how can I tell him what happened?" Penelope asked with wide eyes. "He already hates me because he thinks I cheated on him."

JJ's brow rose. "That's the lie you told him," she asked. "I can't believe he believed that."

Penelope shook her head. "He didn't," she mumbled. She looked at JJ once again, tears misting her eyes. "Jayje, what do I do?"

"You tell him the truth," JJ said softly.

**Congrats to those of you who guessed what happened! You know who you are :) Next one will be up soon my lovelies!**


	5. I'm So Sorry

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**WOW! What a finale! Incredible! Hope you were all watching and enjoying :)**

**Thanks for the reviews everyone! I appreciate every one of them :) The truth is coming for Derek…have no fear! Enjoy and please leave your thoughts!**

**Oh! And one more note…if I responded to a review for Chapter 4 for any of you that was titled 'Love To Hate You review', I apologize. I mixed up 'Love' and 'Hate'…major face palm moment for me!**

Derek leaned his back against the alley wall and rubbed his face. Penelope had promised she would come back, she _promised_. He had to believe she would. He had to. Glancing at his watch, he supposed he should return inside and meet up with Penelope inside.

The moment he stepped inside, Penelope showed up, JJ standing right behind her with her hand on her shoulder. Both of them had devastated looks on their faces. He looked at them both in confusion.

JJ murmured, "I'll leave you two to talk. Uninterrupted." Then she left them alone in the corridor.

Penelope looked like every breath she was taking was difficult. Derek tried to go to her, but she held up her hands, not in defense, but as a warning. He looked at her strange expression on her face.

"What is it?" he asked gently. "What happened?"

Wiping tears from her eyes, she said quietly, "Do you remember when the team came back from Dallas? When you were gone for a week?"

How could he forget? She had broken up with him soon after.

He nodded and she continued. "I found out a week before, while you guys were still on the case that – " She choked on a sob. "I found out I was two months pregnant." She stopped to bite her lip to keep from sobbing louder. "I was going down the stairs when – when I tripped over my own feet and fell down the stairs." Another sob escaped. "I lost it! I lost _our_ baby! _Your_ baby, Derek. I thought if I told you that you would hate me because I made a stupid mistake and killed our child. That's why I left you. I couldn't see your face every day without remembering what I did. I hated lying to you, but I thought leaving you would hurt you less than admitting the truth. I'm so sorry, Derek! I was selfish and was not thinking straight and I will never forgive myself for it." By the time she finished, tears were streaming down her cheeks in waves and she was breathing heavily.

Derek had gone mute with shock after hearing Penelope's confession. Hearing about their child and Penelope's fear that he would hate her brought a whole new level of pain to his life. He could never, not in a million years, hate Penelope.

Never.

Suddenly he wasn't angry about their months of fighting and hatred towards each other. He knew her story about loving another was a lie…he never imagined anything like _this_ was what she was trying to protect him from.

This time, instead of allowing her to stop him from coming closer, he wrapped her in his embrace and held her like what she was to him: the most precious treasure in the world. Her tears wet his shirt and her sobs were muffled against his broad chest. He kissed the top of her head gently and held her tightly. "Baby Girl," he murmured. "I could never, ever hate you. I love you far too much. What happened to our baby is _not_ your fault. You tripped."

"I _killed_ our baby!" she sobbed. "I tripped over my own feet!"

"Baby Girl, there was nothing you could've done," he murmured against her head. "I don't blame you at all. I'm so sorry that I treated you so terribly." He cupped her cheek in his hand and looked her directly in the eye. "The worst feeling in the world was losing you. I would rather be alone in the world with just you than anyone else. Nothing – _nothing_ that happens would make me stop loving you. Least of all an accident."

With trembling lips, she whispered, "How can you forgive me for something like this? I left you, lied to you, and –"

He cut her off by putting his finger to her lips. "Stop it, Penelope," he whispered. "Why are you so afraid? What can I do to make you realize that no matter what I'm not going to hate you?"

She touched his hand that was against her cheek and whispered, "I don't deserve you and your love. I'm so sorry for everything I've put you through. I'll never forgive myself."

"You keep saying that, but what you don't realize is there's nothing to forgive," he said, using his thumb to dry her tears. Putting his arm around her shoulders, he added, "Come on. I'll take you home. You shouldn't have to stay here."

Sniffling, she said, "What about Jackie?"

He shook his head. "She's not important right now."

XXXXX

"Why are we at your house?" Penelope asked hoarsely as she looked out the window and Derek was opening her door. He wrapped an arm around her waist and supported her up the walk of his house and then his porch.

He hushed her. "We were closer to my place," he said softly, unlocking the front door. "I thought I'd bring you here." He helped her over to the couch and let her sit down. She looked around the room in panic, and when her eyes found the stairwell, she tensed up. This was where she was when she lost their baby. She could almost see the blood that had wet the floor before she mopped it up. For a moment she could feel her head knocking against the stairs and the frantic feeling she felt when she grasped for the railing. Her breathing sped up and she could almost buckle over with the memory of the pain of the abdominal cramping.

Derek noticed and he put a calming hand on her knee. "It's okay," he whispered. "You're okay. Hold on." He started unbuckling the straps to her high heels and took them off gently, setting them aside on the ground. "We're just gonna get you up to bed." Grasping her by the waist, he pulled her up to her feet again and started to lead her towards the stairs to take her up to his bedroom. She held his waist tightly and refused to let go until they were safely at the top of the stairs. In his arms there was no chance she would fall.

"I – I need to lie down," she said with a trembling mouth. "Please…"

"Absolutely," he said. As he started to go for the doorknob that would open into his bedroom, she started shaking her head violently.

"No," she said tearfully. She didn't think she could bear to in the room where so many wonderful things had happened for her…and likely Jackie, too.

It was his turn to shake his head. "No," he said. "This is _our_ room. You belong here…with me. There is no other woman in the world I want in here with me."

She cocked an eyebrow and responded sarcastically, "You're trying to tell me that Jackie's never been in here?"

His face was dead serious. "No," he replied, taking her into the room and closing the door behind them. He looked at her skeptical expression and added, "I told her the guest room was my room." She sat down gingerly on the edge of the bed and he rubbed her shoulders gently. Letting go of her, he went to his chest of drawers across the room. She watched with wide eyes as he produced a pair of purple pajamas that were hers.

Tears swam in her eyes and when he brought them to her, she clutched them to her chest. "You kept these? All this time?" she whispered, a wave of emotion crashing over her. The fact that he'd kept something so simple of hers made her feel warm and delicate inside.

Derek sat down next to her and moved some of her hair from her face. He smiled tenderly and nodded. "I didn't want to give them back when I brought you the rest of your stuff," he admitted sheepishly. "Sorry about that."

She shook her head. "Don't be," she said. Blushing, she added, "I may or may not still wear one of your old t-shirts to bed. I didn't want to give it back either."

Both of them stared at the other for what felt like an eternity. His hands were still touching her face and she closed her eyes to savor the warmth. He felt so good against her skin and she never wanted his heat to leave her. If he would just surround her and they were the only two people left alive, she would be just fine. In fact, it would be preferable. Neither of them needed anyone else. She wanted things to go back to before she'd lost their baby, before she'd left Derek.

She wanted to go back to when things were perfect.

Opening her eyes again, she looked into his giant brown ones and whispered shakily, "I – I need to get some sleep." She knew that if she waivered now, she would beg him to stay and hold her for the rest of the night. And she wasn't ready for that.

He nodded before pulling her towards him to kiss her forehead. "I'm right downstairs if you need me, he said quietly before rising and heading out the door. But instead of going downstairs, he sank to the floor next to the bedroom door and put his head in his hands, feeling hopeless about what to do next.

XXXXX

"They left about a half an hour ago," JJ finished, rubbing her temples. She'd just finished relaying Penelope's tale to the team at her request.

"_I can't tell this story more than once, Jayje," she begged. "You have to tell them. Please…"_

The rest of the BAU gaped at her, unable to believe what they'd heard. Reid was the first to speak.

"Why didn't they tell us they were together?" he asked, a hurt look on his face. "Did they not trust us?"

"They were going to tell us, but then she lost the baby and left him," JJ said sadly.

She was about to say more when Jackie came stomping towards them with a murderous look on her face. Blake and JJ shared a look before the other woman started in with a rant. "Have _any_ of you seen that boyfriend of mine? He's simply disappeared and there's someone very important I want him to meet. It's my brother and I –"

Hotch cut her off. "Derek went home, Jackie," he said curtly.

Jackie's mouth fell open and then she clamped it shut once more. "He went _where_?" she snapped finally.

"Penelope…wasn't feeling well," Blake said as delicately as she could. She glanced desperately at the rest of the team for assistance.

Rossi coughed and nodded. "Right," he said, "so he took her home."

"You're serious?" she sputtered. "Derek took…_Penelope_ home?" For a split second she had a shocked look on her face, but then she burst out laughing. Wiping her eyes, she laughed, "Oh my goodness! Are you all trying to make me giggle myself silly? Derek would never take Penelope home. The two of them are always at each other's throats. There's no possible way he would take her home. Besides, he wouldn't leave me here. Not when there's still so much going on tonight."

JJ bit her lip to keep from screeching obscenities at her. "Well, he's not here," she snapped. "So whether you choose to believe what we told you or not, he's left the gallery."

Jackie sighed wistfully and waved her hand dismissively. "Ah well," she said. "I guess he'll just miss out on meeting my big brother. I'll see you all later. Do let me know if he comes back."

None of them responded as she started away.

When she was gone, Will broke the silence. "Is it just me, or is that lady one nasty bitch?" he asked, sipping his champagne.

No one responded; they all just nodded in agreement.


	6. I'll Hold You As Long As You Like

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Thanks for the feedback guys! I'm so glad you guys are liking this :) Now even though Penelope and Derek are both on the same page about what happened, there's still some bumps in store…and most of those bumps have the name Jackie. Enjoy!**

**P.S. Glad you all liked my little Will line in there :) I'll give him so more later in this one. I tend to kill him off in most of my fics :(**

Derek had been staring at the ceiling for nearly two hours when he heard the front door to his house open. He was still sitting outside his bedroom door, frantic that Penelope might need him for something and now he had Jackie coming into his house. His night was taking another turn that he didn't know he wanted. Rising to his feet, he rubbed his face and went to his bedroom to check on Penelope one last time. She was breathing deeply and softly, the covers thrown off of her upper half. It took all his energy not to go in a retuck her in and kiss her forehead. Sighing, he closed the door again and went down the stairs where Jackie was moving around in the kitchen.

"Hey Der Bear!" she cooed, looking up from the sink where she was washing her hands.

He rolled his eyes. He loathed the nickname Jackie had given him. Jackie was meant to be a casual date from a few months ago that he'd met while out at a bar after Penelope had left. She wasn't supposed to be anything other than that. But then she kept running into him whenever he went out and he eventually just got used to her presence in his life. What he'd told Penelope was true; he'd told Jackie that the guest room of his house was his normal bedroom. Another small fact he had not mentioned was that sex with Jackie was less than mediocre. It was downright awful. Each time he came, he had to picture it being Penelope.

The worst part was Jackie was so clueless to his distaste for her that she kept coming back for more.

Running his hand over his face tiredly, he watched as Jackie started to dry her hands off. She looked up at him and gave him a pouty smile. "Oh, you look tired," she said. "Was that why you left early? You know Derek, you could have told me you didn't want to stay instead of telling your little team that you were taking _Penelope_ home! Penelope Garcia, honestly! I don't know why you would tell them to name her. The two of you seem to hate each other!"

That was another reason why Jackie thought the guest room was his room; his bedroom was covered in pictures of Penelope and himself.

"Jackie, listen," he started. "We need to talk." He needed to get rid of her, once and for all. "I'm –"

"You want to maybe…dance on upstairs?" she asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

"No, listen Jackie," he said firmly, putting up his hand up to stop her. "We have to talk."

"Oh," she purred, trailing her fingers up his chest. "Can't we talk _later_?" She sounded like a petulant five-year old in want of Christmas presents.

He shook his head. "No," he stated. "We can't talk later. We have to talk now."

Backing away from him to lean against the back of the couch, she sighed dramatically, "Fine then. Let's talk if that's what you want to do."

He nodded gratefully. Looking her in the eye, he started, "Jackie, I think you're a great girl and very funny and smart –"

Her eyes erupted into huge ball-shaped sizes. It was like she couldn't believe her ears. "Wait, wait!" she screeched. "You're breaking up with me?"

"I haven't been entirely honest with you," he said tiredly. "I'm in love with…someone else. I always have been and…well, it's…" His voice trailed off. This was harder than he thought. He hated hurting Jackie's feelings, but it had to be done. There was no possible way he could be with her. He was going to take care of Penelope and mourn the loss of their child. He didn't even care if she never wanted to get back together with him. Being with Jackie was just wrong.

She was gaping at him. "You're in love with someone else?" she repeated dumbly. "Who the hell is it?"

"That's irrelevant," he muttered.

Jumping to her feet, she screeched, "It damn well is irrelevant! If you tell me who the homewrecker is, I'll make damn sure she's out of the way! You just are feeling astray…we're getting started in our relationship and this is normal. We're in a rough spot. We'll get through it." She went to his side and clung to him desperately. "Please Der Bear. You may not have said it yet, but you love me. I know you do. And I know we're having a little trouble with sex right now, but we can make it better. I know we can!"

Removing her arms from his shoulders, Derek shook his head. "No, the sex thing…it's just not working because I can't…Jesus, this is gonna sound awful and I'm apologizing in advance because it's going to sound mean, but it's not working because I don't…want you that way."

Her face fell immediately and her eyes teared up. "So you're telling me that even though the sex was great in the beginning –"

"Was because it wasn't you I was seeing," he finished. "Again, I know it sounds terrible, but…"

She slapped him across the face sharply. "You – you cad! You no good son of a bitch! Who is the girl? Who –" Stopping short, her mouth fell open suddenly. "The team said you took Penelope home! She's the one you..." Stomping her foot, she shouted, "But you two hate each other! All you've ever done is fight whenever I've seen you near one another! How could you be in love with _her_?"

He rubbed his face with both hands in frustration. He was getting sick of having to justify this. "We'd had a bad breakup before I met you…I was planning on proposing to her when…" He decided to leave out the part about the baby. It was none of Jackie's business about his and Penelope's heartbreak. "Well, she broke up with me for personal reasons."

Jackie slapped him again. "You are a terrible man, Derek Morgan," she hissed, going to grab her purse and stomp towards the door. "You – and you're freakin' bitch! – will be sorry this happened! Mark my words."

Slamming the door shut behind her, she was gone before Derek could say anything again. He sighed ruggedly. It didn't exactly go well, but the job was done. Turning off the lights in the downstairs, he headed back upstairs and went to resume his seat by the door as if nothing had happened just then with a girl.

After another half an hour, his head snapped up when he heard weeping on the other side of the door. It wasn't loud, but his ears ended up picking it up. He rose swiftly from his spot on the ground and went to open the door to his room.

On the bed, curled up in the fetal position, was Penelope, crying against the sheets. His heart immediately ached and he was at her side in an instant. Touching her shoulder tenderly, he whispered, "Penelope? What's wrong, sweetheart?"

She turned to look at him. Her eyes were misty and her cheeks were soaked. "Everything Derek," she wept. "Everything is wrong."

He stroked his thumb over her cheekbone. There wasn't anything he could say. His tongue could find the words. All he wanted to do was comfort her, but at the moment he was blanking on how.

"Derek?"

"Yeah, Penelope?"

"Will – will you hold me?" Her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible. The hope in her eyes was very clear.

He didn't even answer her; all he did was crawl in beside her, wrap her in his arms, and kiss her neck. Then he spoke. "I'll hold you as long as you like," he whispered.

XXXXX

Jackie stomped into her father's mansion, tears of rage still streaming down her eyes. She'd never been angrier in her life. Derek Morgan and Penelope Garcia? What the hell? Jackie and Derek were a match made in heaven. Where did Penelope get off getting in the way of that?

"Jackie?"

She turned and saw her father in the doorway to his study, a tumbler of whiskey in his hand and a frown on his face. Rushing towards him, she threw her arms around his broad frame and whimpered, "Oh, Daddy! Everything's gone so wrong! So wrong!"

He patted her back in a comforting manner. "What happened? What's wrong?" he asked in concern. If anyone had hurt his daughter he would make them pay. A slow and painful payment.

"It's Derek, Daddy!" she wailed. "He – he left me for a lesser woman! He just told me I was a lousy girlfriend and that I was –" Maybe it would be better if she left out the part about being bad in bed. "He just left me for her?"

"What's the girl's name?" he asked.

"Her name is Penelope," she wept. "Penelope Garcia. And she's awful! Just awful. She's so mean and –"

"Hush now, sweetie," her father whispered. "Just let me take care of everything. I'll make a couple of calls."

Jackie gave her father a tearful smile. "Thank you, Daddy."


	7. Every Fiber of My Being

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Here's the seventh chapter! Thank you all for the reviews! I'm glad you guys are liking this. We've got some bumps ahead for the dynamic duo, but happiness will be there in the end. Enjoy!**

**P.S. – I haven't mentioned her at all in this, but Erin Strauss is still alive in this fic. So, another pairing: Strauss/Rossi. I'm also planning a oneshot about the two of them, so keep your eyes peeled.**

_1 Month Later_

"How are you feeling right now?" Derek asked Penelope gently.

Penelope had essentially been living with Derek again for the past month, but the two of them had been completely platonic. He'd been nothing but supportive and kept up with everything. And she was grateful for it. She could absolutely count on his love and she knew every time she pushed him away it hurt him. And it hurt her as well. But she couldn't stand how much she had hurt him. She couldn't help but feel guilty about what she'd done to him. She'd broken his heart and that was the worst thing she could have done.

At the moment she was feeling relatively crummy on a morning before work. She was vomiting and feeling clammy. He was holding her back and had a cool towel on standby to dab at her forehead. A hand was on her back, rubbing and comforting.

"A little," she mumbled, wiping her mouth with a piece of toilet paper. Rising from the ground, she patted her shoulder and hugged him softly. "I appreciate it." Dusting off her pencil skirt, she murmured, "Let's go to work."

He looked at her with concern and said, "Are you sure? We can take you to the doctor and –"

She put a finger to his lips and shook her head. "No, Derek," she said. "I'm not going to the doctor. Let's just go to work. You've got a case and I've got to present it. So…let's go get coffee."

He looked at her reluctantly and out of the blue pulled her into his arms for an embrace. "Okay, Baby," he murmured against her hair. "But if you feel any worse can you promise me you'll go in? I just don't want to see you hurting." Keeping her in his arms, he cupped the side of her face. "Please."

His eyes were so full of love and compassion. It was as if his heart was in his eyes and he was pouring it out to her. Penelope sighed. She didn't understand how he could be so forgiving of what she did. "I promise," she whispered. And then she leaned up and kissed him. "If I feel any worse, I'll go to the doctor."

Lighting up, he grinned. The brightness entered his eyes and he said, "Good. That's good." As they started for the door, he stopped her again and murmured, "Can I tell you something, Penelope?"

"What?" she asked. "What do you want to ask me?"

"Can I tell you I love you?"

She paused like a deer in the headlights, feeling like she was put on the spot. But the truth was she was just as much in love with him as he was with her. She wanted to say it to him just as badly. So smiling, she nodded and said, "Yes. But only if I can tell you those words first." When his thousand watt grin lit up his face, she murmured, "Derek Morgan, I love you. With every fiber of my being, I love you."

Lifting her off her feet, he twirled her around in circles and rested his forehead against hers. "I love you more than anyone in the whole world," he declared. "That is the god-honest truth, Penelope."

XXXXX

JJ was pleased when she arrived at work and found Morgan escorting Penelope gently into the building. Ever since the tragic confession, no Jackie had been seen again and Morgan had been nothing less than the most caring man in the world.

"I'm so glad they're doing well," Reid said, coming up next to JJ and grinning. "It's good that they're supporting each other. I hated all those fights. They were awful. I missed those god-awful flirts they tossed back and forth. Not my favorite Morgan and Garcia moment."

"More like period," JJ said. "That was months of fighting. That was the worst thing I've ever seen in the BAU history. Outside of the cases, mind you."

"Another thing I find funny is that Jackie just quietly dropped off the face of the Earth," Reid pondered. "There's nothing about that woman that screamed 'quiet' to me. It doesn't quite fit her profile."

A laugh bubbled out of JJ's throat. "So she's an unsub now?" she giggled. "I didn't like her –"

"'Didn't like her?'" Now Reid was the one laughing. "JJ, you practically wanted to rip her throat out. And I'm not saying it's without good reason, but you didn't just dislike her. You _hated_ her."

Rolling her eyes, she said, "Eh, let's not battle semantics. I just think trying to call her an unsub is just a little ridiculous. She's a bitch, not a psychopath." She paused a moment. "Although it would be nice to lock her ass up. There's not a Prada for her to spend oodles of money on. I'd like to see her in a nice orange jumpsuit."

"But orange is _so_ not her color!" Reid looked at her gaping mouth and said, "What? Isn't that something I should've said?"

JJ just patted his shoulder. "Don't hurt yourself, Spence," she said.

XXXXX

Derek was in the small kitchenette area getting a cup of coffee when Rossi came in next to him. He leaned back against the counter and fixed Derek with his look when he was about to embark on a long conversation. Derek turned to look at him. "What's up, Rossi?" he asked, sipping his coffee. "Something on your mind?"

"How's Penelope doing?" Rossi asked quietly, jumping right into the conversation. He meant business. Strictly business.

He sighed. "She's hanging in there," he murmured, staring down into the steaming liquid in his mug. He felt a wave of thought coming over him and he had to struggle to keep his head level and in the moment with Rossi. "She wakes up in the middle of the night screaming a couple of times a week. "I've been sleeping on the floor outside the door so I can get there quickly."

"You're sleeping on the floor outside her door?" Rossi asked, arching an eyebrow.

"When I am sleeping," he grumbled. "I don't want to. I just – I just –"

"Want to get to her the immediate second she needs you?" Rossi finished for him.

Derek nodded numbly.

Rossi clapped him on the shoulder. "I know how you feel, kid," he said. "I would do that for Erin. She's still struggling with the drinking and the only thing that helps her when she gets really bad in the middle of the night is holding her. Not too tight, but just holding her and letting her know that she's strong and that she can fight through anything that jumps towards her. She can fight it because nothing is too powerful that she can't beat it." He looked at Derek much closer in the eye.

Looking at him curiously, Derek asked, "You think that I should try it with Penelope?"

"If she wants," Rossi returned.

Derek rubbed his face. "I just don't want her to think I'm trying to make a move on her," he said. "I don't want her to think I want to pressure her. I would never sleep with her again if that's what she wanted. I'll do whatever she wants, whatever she asks."

"And I think she knows that," Rossi said confidently. "The woman loves you too. I wouldn't worry too much about the sex…she won't be able to keep her hands off of you for the rest of her life." He gave him a wink and glanced down at his watch quickly. "Looks like we've got to get going. Hotch said we were wheels up in twenty, so you know it's going to be a messed up one."

Derek nodded mutely, following Rossi out of the kitchen to go say goodbye to Penelope before he left.


	8. Attack

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Chapter 8 is here lovelies! Thank you once again for the reviews…I appreciate them very much :) Here's the next one.**

Derek was fidgety the entire time on the plane, going between pacing and checking his phone to see if anyone had called him. JJ looked at him sympathetically and patted his shoulder. "She'll be okay," she told him.

"I get the feeling that something bad is gonna happen if I'm not there," he choked out. "She's been doing well, but I just don't want her to feel alone. The only people she's really connected with right now are on this plane."

"Nothing bad is going to happen to her," JJ told him gently.

He stared out the window at the sky and sighed. "I hope you're right," he said, rubbing his face.

XXXXX

Penelope rubbed her face tiredly around noon and took another sip of tea. Her stomach had stopped hurting by now and she was left with a tiny bit of nausea. She probably did need to see the doctor, but it would have to wait. What she really needed to do was figure out where her relationship with Derek was going. She loved him with all her heart and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him.

But she needed to show him that.

She'd heard the majority of Rossi's conversation with him. Derek was sleeping outside her door? That had brought tears to her eyes. She knew he was waking her up in the middle of the night, but she didn't know he was getting to her seconds after she woke up. He really did deserve better than her. She needed to figure out a way to show her love and gratitude.

As she moved to pick up her coffee again, her phone rang and she answered it as chirpy as she could. "You've reached your Oracle, speak for I have given you permission," she said.

A low chuckle sounded from the phone and she felt her heart jump. "Sounds like you're feeling better, Baby Girl," he said.

She couldn't stop the smile from creeping onto her face. "I'm feeling pretty good right now," she said. "Just a little queasy. Other than that I'm feeling great!" She knew her voice must have sounded forced, but she was extremely glad to hear his voice. It was bringing her some relief from the rest of the world.

"I'm glad you're feeling better," he said sincerely. "I'm going to need a few names from you for the case…"

When he finished and she got him his information for him, she whispered, "Hey Derek?"

"Yeah, sweetheart?" he asked softly.

She took a deep breath and whispered, "I love you."

His voice hitched and he murmured back, "I love you, too."

After he'd hung up the phone, she had tears rolling down her cheeks. Cursing herself for her ridiculous emotions that were spinning out of control, she wiped her face and laughed out loud. She wiped her face. "I can't believe I'm doing this," she giggled to herself. She rose from her seat and headed towards the door. It was noon. She had time for lunch.

XXXXX

_Two Days Later_

"Ready to go, Morgan?" Reid asked, poking his head into Derek's side of their double room. The case had just wrapped up and they were getting on the jet to return home. He could hardly wait to get back to her.

Looking up from his packing, Derek nodded and grinned. "All ready," he said.

XXXXX

Penelope had finished turning off her computers and had her coat on at the end of the night to start heading back home. Well, Derek's home. She still had her apartment, she just had to move out of it. If Derek wanted her to. She couldn't move if Derek didn't want her in his house.

As she was heading away from her office, her phone rang. Pulling her phone out of her bag's pocket, she noticed the caller ID: **Hot Stuff**. A smile lit up her face and she answered it hurriedly. "Hey Hot Stuff!" she cooed into the phone. Over the last the few days she'd begun to get back into the swing of flirting with him. She'd missed it. "Are you guys getting on the jet now?"

Derek laughed from the other end of the line. "Yep, we're boarding now," he said. "We'll be home in a few hours and I'll meet you at home."

"Do you want me to have some dinner ready for you?" she asked with hope in her voice. "I'd be happy to –"

He laughed. "Baby, Baby, don't worry about it," he said. "I'll be fine. I'm not hungry."

She bit her lip and punched in the button to the parking garage. "Okay," she said skeptically. Another thought was sitting on her mind. It had been ever since she'd overheard him and Rossi. "Er, Derek?" she added hesitantly. The doors to the elevator had closed now and she was left in relative silence aside from his breathing on the other end of the line.

"Is everything okay, Baby Girl?" he asked, his voice very concerned.

She took a deep breath. "Derek, I wanted to let you know that I – that I –" God, she couldn't believe she was getting embarrassed about this. She'd had the most kinky sex of her life with the man and she was embarrassed to ask _this_ question. "Derek I wanted to ask you if you would – if you _wanted_ to come sleep in my – I mean, _our_ bed? If you want to. I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to. I just wanted to let you know that you could. If you want…"

He was silent and at first she thought he was going to balk and say no because he didn't want her to think he was pressuring her. But then, as if she could almost see the smile on the face as he said it. "Yes! I would _love_ to sleep in our bed tonight," he said. Someone said something in the background and he sighed.

"Gotta go?" she asked, disappointed.

"Yeah," he said grudgingly. "I'll see you when I get home. I love you."

"Love you too," she murmured, tossing her phone back in her purse. By now she was in the parking garage and walking through the area towards Esther. Her heels were clicking against the pavement and echoing through the garage.

From behind her she heard another person walking and turned around to see who it was. She didn't recognize the man who was wearing a large black over coat and his face was shadowed by a hat. The creepiness of his outfit didn't make her pause very long; she wanted to get home. Rubbing her forehead, she stopped next to her car and pulled out her keys, but dropped them like the klutz she was. "Dammit," she grumbled, leaning down and picking up her keys. While down on the asphalt, a shadow came over her. "Umm, excuse me?" she asked. "Can I help you –" She looked up to see the man in the coat and hat laying down at her.

"Shut up, bitch!" the figure growled, raising his foot and kicking her roughly in the chest.

The air rushed from her lungs. "Jesus, what do you want?" she gasped in pain.

Tutting and clucking his tongue at her, he leaned back down and grabbed her by the ponytail, yanking her up wards to hiss, "Didn't I tell you to shut up? You don't get to ask questions…just listen!" Then he shoved her head forward again so that it hit the tire of her car. Her glasses broke and fell off onto the ground. A cry of pain escaped her throat and he laughed. "You've got a lot to learn!" Then he grabbed her again. His breath was hot against her face and she couldn't help but wrinkle her nose and try and squirm away.

"Let me go!" she growled, lashing out with her fists.

Grabbing her by the wrist, the man twisted her arm and she let out a cry. He'd broken her arm. "Stop dating Derek Morgan or I'll break you other arm, sweetheart," he hissed, shoving her onto the ground so that she hit it with a whimper.

As the man began to walk away, Penelope tried to squint at him, but her vision was too blurry. She let out a sob when she tried to move her body and her arm caught on the tire. Her phone. She needed her phone. A few feet away from her was her bag and she managed to get her hand into the pocket where she grasped her phone's smooth surface. Turning on the screen, she pushed the three buttons she needed.

"Nine, one, one, what is your emergency?" a voice asked.

With a deep breath and a gasp, she managed, "I've been attacked…I need help…"

**Don't worry…she'll be okay!**


	9. This Wasn't Random

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Apologies dear friends for the delay in releasing this chapter. I've got my graduation open house this weekend and actual commencement on Sunday! Thanks for the reviews again and I hope you enjoy :)**

"Ms. Garcia, is there anyone you need us to call?" a doctor in the emergency room asked her as a nurse was drawing blood.

Penelope nodded through the pain of her injuries. "Yes," she said hoarsely. "My – " She didn't quite know if she could call Derek this, but she was going to do it anyway. "My boyfriend. His name is Derek. His number is in my phone. It's in my purse. But he's under 'Hot Stuff.'"

As they were fishing through her phone for Derek's number, she thought back to the attack. He'd been brutal and he had no idea who she was. Or did he? Someone must have hired him to tell her not to be with Derek. The biggest question was who.

"Hello, is this Derek?" the doctor asked. "Yes, okay. This is Dr. Hanson, I'm a doctor at St. Andrews General. Your girlfriend had me call you…she's been attacked. It's –"

She sat up frantically and shook her head. "Please! Don't scare him…I'm fine. Just a little banged up. Please, he will seriously freak out!"

One of the ER nurses came to her and said, "Sweetie , you need to lie back. You're more than a little banged up. Your head was hit pretty hard. We need to make sure you don't have a concussion. I don't think he'll freak out as bad as you're saying."

Several hours later the nurse regretted what she'd said.

XXXXX

As soon as the jet landed on the air strip, Derek was storming off the plane. He felt nothing but fury raging through his body and his fists were clenched into tight balled fists.

"Derek, slow down!" JJ called as he stalked towards his car. She was chasing after him with Hotch and Rossi following behind. "Derek, you can't see her while you're like this! It will just worry her. She can't see you like this."

He whirled around to face all three of his team members and glared with a deathly frightening gleam to his eyes. "Don't tell me how to act!" he roared. "Someone just attacked Penelope and you expect me to be calm? I swear to God if I find the son of a bitch who did this I'll kill him!"

Hotch put a hand on his shoulder roughly. "No, Morgan," he stated firmly. "JJ's right. You need to calm down. This will just make Penelope upset. She can't see you like this. Don't give the man who did this what he wants."

Taking deep breaths, Derek grasped the handle of the car and got in. "We need to go to her," he ground out. "I promise I'll stay calm. We need to go now."

The whole car ride to the hospital Derek was fidgeting with rage. Hotch had chosen to drive, even though it was Derek's car. They pulled into the lot of the hospital and he was out of the car in a second, racing towards the door. He burst through the automatic doors and his head shot in every direction to find an information desk. Rossi, Hotch, and JJ followed quickly behind, Hotch coming up to join Derek to keep him in check. He put both hands on the counter and demanded of the nurse manning it, "I need to see Penelope Garcia. She came in a few hours ago. Please…where is she?" His eyes were begging and desperate. He wanted nothing more than to be by Penelope's side.

"Let me just check," the nurse said, clicking some information into her computer. "She's in room 304. The doctor made a note that she can only have one visitor at a time. Please adhere to this."

Hotch nodded. "Of course," he said. "We'll just be going to find her."

The four headed in the direction they'd been pointed and went towards the room. Outside room 304 there stood a doctor marking something off on his chart. When he saw them, he nodded and said, "Hello. You must be Ms. Garcia's boyfriend. I'm Dr. Hanson, the physician taking care of your girlfriend."

Derek rubbed his face and shook the doctor's hand. "How is she?" he asked.

Dr. Hanson sighed. "She's awake and resting," he explained. "She's pretty bruised up right now, but she has no concussion. The baby is okay and –"

Derek's eyes went wide as saucers. "Wait, wait!" he yelped. "Back up! You're saying she's pregnant?"

The doctor nodded. "Yes," he said. "She's only a month along, but nevertheless she's pregnant. The baby is in perfect health right now. You're welcome to go in and see her, but one at a time."

"Have you told her about the baby?" Hotch asked with his arms folded across his chest.

Dr. Hanson nodded. "Yes, she's aware," he said. "She seems to be in a little bit of a shock. I have to be going…I have other patients. Feel free to go in and see her." He walked off, leaving the four of them standing outside the door.

JJ's eyes filled with tears and her hands were covering her mouth. Turning to Derek, she asked, "Derek, when –"

He held up his hand and said, "It happened the night of the gallery opening. Just…I need to go and see her." He left his three companions gaping at him in the hallway and went in to go to Penelope's side.

As he entered the room, Penelope looked up at him. His mind began to race when he saw her appearance. She had a black eye and her forehead was swollen and purple. A cast was on her arm. Immediately he was by her side and sitting on the edge of her bed. Taking hold of her face as gently as he could, he whispered, "Baby, how are you feeling?"

"I feel fine," she lied with a small smile. He fixed her with a knowing skeptical look and she huffed, "Fine. I feel bloody awful. But I don't want you to worry. I'm –"

Cutting her off, he said, "Baby Girl, I'm going to keep you so well protected, no one will even think of touching you ever again. And I will do whatever you want to keep you comfortable with the baby. We'll make sure you both are in perfect health and –"

She rested her forehead against his and hushed him. "We're both fine," she murmured. "I'm okay. The baby's okay. It's all okay."

He kept her close to him. "Is there anything that you can remember about the attack?" he asked her after a few minutes of silence. "Anything that made it something other than an average attack on the street?" She bit her lip and he knew she was hiding something from him. He felt it. "Penelope, what are you not telling me?"

Sighing after another few moments of unbearable silence, she said, "This wasn't random."

"What makes you say that?" he asked curiously. He was also afraid of the answer.

Another shaky breath escaped her mouth. "He – he told me that I have to leave you or he was going to have me beaten again."

The fiery burning rage was beginning to boil inside him again and he was positive: if he found the bastard who did this, he would kill him. "I'll – I'll kill him if I ever find him," he told her, voicing his thoughts. Even his voice was shaking with fury.

She took both his hands and shook her head. "Don't," she said firmly. "They – whoever they are – are not going to keep us apart. I'm not leaving you ever again. I won't do it. We're soul mates, to use the cliché term for it. We're so in tune with one another that to try and split us up would be impossible. They won't do it. They _can't_ do it."

Her words calmed him only a fraction. He would do anything for her to keep her safe. If it meant doing something when she said "don't" then he would do it and face her wrath when she was safe. But at the moment he had to figure out who was doing this to her before he could do anything else.

Penelope released a yawn and snuggled into Derek. "I'm so tired right now, Derek," she whispered. "I think I'm just going to…take a…nap…" Five minutes later she was breathing deeply against his chest. Leaning back against the hospital bed, Derek held her, stroking her hair back.

Kissing the top of her head, he whispered, "I love you." He held her for the rest of the night, eventually falling asleep with her wrapped in his arms.

**So yes, Penelope is pregnant from the little alley night passion ;) Stay tuned for more!**


	10. Dinner and Jazz

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Many apologies on this being released so late! I graduated over the weekend and was busy with all of the little things that go with it. That and I took a couple of Me-Days to play some Lara Croft. I find those good to refuel :) So without further ado, here's chapter 10! Thanks again for the reviews lovely people!**

**Hope you all don't mind my skips of time! It's how this story is gonna work.**

_2 Months Later_

"Hotch, we are no closer to finding the jackass who did this to Penelope than we were right after it happened," Derek grunted as he stomped into Hotch's office. "We've received threatening calls on the phone, letters in the mail. Hell, someone even made a death threat against Penelope by sending flowers with a note attached! We need to do something."

Sighing, Hotch said, "Listen, Morgan, there are no leads whatsoever to these. They've been using disposable cells to call you, they paid with cash for the flowers, no fingerprints on the envelopes or paper. There's nothing. Strauss and the Director want us off this case. If anything new should arise, they'll let us look into it, but not until then." Looking at him sympathetically, he added, "I know this is hard for you and I'm worried for you and Penelope as well, but there's nothing we can do."

Derek got to his feet and shook his head. "It's not good enough," he growled, storming out of his unit chief's office. On the way out he almost ran smack into Reid.

"Whoa there, Morgan," he said. "You okay there? You seem a little on edge."

Rubbing his forehead, Derek said tiredly, "Strauss and the Director are cutting us off from the case of Penelope's stalker. I just…the only time she's safe is when she's here or when we're at home together. I feel like I'm not doing enough to protect her. And we still don't know who the hell this is tormenting her. All the time, I feel like punching a wall. I just want her to be safe…I want the _baby_ to be safe. I feel like she's stressed out enough as it and it's not good for her or the baby and –"

Reid shook his head and halted Derek mid-speech. "You're speaking too fast Morgan and that's causing your anxiety to go through the roof," he said. "Now, I think I can do a little research on my own time and I'll find a way to catch them."

Derek studied Reid for a moment. "You would do that for us?" he asked.

Nodding, he answered with confidence, "Absolutely."

"Well then, what do you want me to do?" Derek asked swiftly. With Reid by his side, he could protect Penelope while finding the stalker.

"You need to protect Penelope," he said. "Help her get through this because she needs you. And you need her. You need each other. And your child needs you. So my one and only job for you right now is to spend every moment you can with the woman you love."

Derek smiled at him after a few moments. "You know kid, you are one special dude," he said.

A smile covered Reid's face and he nodded. "Of this I am aware," he said smugly.

XXXXX

"Good morning, sleepyhead!"

Penelope was roused from her dreaming by Derek's overly cheery morning voice and she groaned, pulling a pillow over her head to block out the light disrupting her sleep. "Lemme 'lone," she mumbled through the fabric.

"No can do, Baby Girl!" he sang chirpily. "Work's a callin' us. People to save, bad guys to catch, Reid to listen to spout off utterly useless facts."

Suddenly light forced her eyes open as the pillow was yanked from her face. Squinting, the reached for her glasses on the bedside table and glared up at Derek's grinning face. He was standing in his boxers as he buttoned up his navy blue shirt. "I was having a good dream," she whined, pouting her lower lip.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he pushed some of her rumpled hair back from her face and tweaked her nose. "Oh, poor baby," he cooed, sticking out his lower lip in the process to imitate her face. "What were you dreaming about?"

Shyly, she said, "Well, I was dreaming about us…us and this little girl." She pointed down at the small bump that was growing every single day. "It was just the three of us. We were just sitting. She looks a lot like you…at least in my funky dream head. It was perfect" She touched his eyebrow and giggled. "She could do this with her itty bitty eyebrows." To prove her point, she pushed his left eyebrow up in a sloppy version of his classic facial expression.

He laughed and took her hand, kissing her palm in the process. Rising to his feet, he took both her hands and hoisted her to her feet. "Up you go, silly girl," he purred against her neck. "We have to get to work. And if you hurry up, we can go get coffee for me and tea for you and the little lady in there."

Stepping up on her tiptoes, Penelope placed a kiss on Derek's lips and blew her bangs out of her eyes. "Oh, _alright_," she huffed teasingly. "But you have to drive."

Kissing her back, he smiled and murmured, "I can do that."

XXXXX

"Usual tea for you, Penelope?" Ashley, the barista at Penelope and Derek's local coffee shop, asked.

Penelope smiled sweetly and said, "Yeah. And a large black coffee for Derek."

As she was waiting for the two drinks, Ashley said, "So, how's the baby doing? Have you found out the sex yet?"

Penelope looked down at her small, but steadily growing baby bump and rubbed it. "The little girl is doing well," she said happily.

"Oh, that's so wonderful!" Ashley cooed. Putting the coffee and tea on the counter, she added, "When you get sonogram pictures, would you bring them for me to see? I can't believe you're having a little girl! That's so exciting! I'm so happy for you and Derek both."

Penelope tilted her head to the side and smiled again. "Thanks Ashley," she said. "You're so sweet." Checking her watch, she blew out a sigh. "I gotta get going. I'll see you later." She waved and started for the door. Derek was sitting in the car on his cell phone when she arrived at the curb and she motioned for him to pop open the door for her. Nodding, he leaned across the seats with ease and released the handle so she could get in. Quickly he dropped a kiss on her cheek and mouthed a "thank you" before she put his coffee in the cup holder next to him.

"Uh-huh," he said as he started to drive off. "Yep, alright. Thank you very much. We'll be there at eight o'clock."

Penelope raised an eyebrow at him as she took a sip of her tea. "Who is seeing who at eight?" she questioned lightly. There was a hint of a sparkle in her eyes along with her curiosity.

Grinning crookedly at her, Derek winked. "Well, mama," he began, "seeing as we haven't been out in a really long time, I wanted to take you to dinner. There's a jazz club right across the street too."

She blinked several times. This would be the most coupley thing they'd done outside of their home in months. She felt her heart warm up inside at his gesture. He really was serious about resuming their relationship. He didn't hold any resentment toward her about her stupid mistake that led to the miscarriage. He'd just been waiting for the right moment.

"Well," she started dramatically. "I'm just going to have to find something nice to wear aren't I?"

Chuckling, he took her hand and brought it up to his lips to kiss it. "Honey, you could wear sweatpants and I'd still think you're the most beautiful woman on the planet," he told her honestly. They ended up at a red light, so he leaned over and nibbled on her earlobe. Dropping his voice to a whisper, he added, "Although you wouldn't have to be wearing anything for me to think that…au natural works just fine for me."

Giggling, she said, "I think the restaurant and jazz club would frown upon that."

He shrugged. "Then we'll just have to find time afterwards for that," he said mischievously. He leaned over to kiss her and she cupped his cheek in her hand, relishing the feel of his lips against hers. Behind them, however, a few honking cars sounded, breaking their moment; the light had turned green.

"Damn traffic lights," Derek grumbled, pecking her lips on last time before putting his foot on the gas pedal.

"They are so necessary though," Penelope giggled.

"Not more necessary than me kissing you," he said with a wiggle of his eyebrows and a grin on his face.


	11. Digging In Bushes and Hearts Guiding

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Here's the next chapter in this little saga! Thank you folks for the lovely reviews :) I appreciate them a lot…now on with the story!**

Derek walked Penelope safely to her office, pecked her lips quickly, and then dashed off down the corridor again to find Rossi and Reid. He had a mission he was intent on focusing on and he needed the two of them to help. Hotch was in meetings all day, Blake was out of town with her husband, and JJ had already signed on to be with Penelope while he conducted his plan. It didn't matter how long it took. He was going to get the job done. And with two extra sets of hands it might just go a little faster.

It certainly would be entertaining.

As he reached the bullpen, he went up behind Reid, who was busy checking his email, and clapped a hand down on his shoulder. The younger man nearly jumped ten feet in the air and let out a short yelp of surprise. Derek raised a brow at him and smirked. "Careful there man," he sniggered. "Don't let your panties get all bunched up."

Reid smoothed his hair down and sniffed. "Humph," he said. "I'll have you know that I wear boxers, just like the rest of you men. Even I know that panties are for women."

Wrinkling his brow, Derek shook his head. "Eh, I'd rather not hear about your underwear, Reid," he said. "But what I do need is some assistance from you and Rossi. Something big."

"Did I hear my name being mentioned?"

Both Derek and Reid turned around to find Rossi walking towards them, a large stack of files in his hands. "Yes, you did hear your name," Reid told him simply. "Morgan here says he needs your help and mine."

Rossi raised a brow. "Oh?" he asked. "With what?"

An enormous grin lit up Derek's face. "At lunch time, we've got a job to do," he stated firmly. "And you both are going to help me out."

"No JJ on this one?" Reid asked in a puzzled manner.

"She's already got a job for me and that's keeping Penelope preoccupied while the three of us do this job I keep mentioning." Derek's grin widened and suddenly Rossi and Reid didn't look so excited.

"Your grin is telling me that this isn't going to be a normal job that would require our help, like going into a jewelry store and looking at rings?" Rossi bemoaned.

This time Derek's grin was positively evil looking. "Nope," he said.

"Do I want to know?" Reid asked. His face was covered with a frightened expression, like whatever the plan was meant he had to walk on his hands over a field of hot coals.

"Gentlemen," Derek said with a flourish, "wear pants you don't care about getting dirty." He paused. "We're going to go dig around in some bushes."

XXXXX

"So you buys are going out tonight?" JJ asked excitedly. She and Penelope were sitting in her office for lunch and she was waiting for an update on life with Derek. Ever since the two of them reunited and were expecting a baby, JJ was ecstatic and eager to hear everything about how their lives were evolving. "You've got to tell me where you're going?"

Penelope smirked at JJ's delight in knowing everything. "Yep," she replied as she sipped her water. "He's taking me to _Le_ _Royal_ for dinner and then we're going to _The M Club_ across the street afterwards. You should see him…he's so happy right now." She smiled warmly, her heart shining in her eyes.

Across from her, JJ smiled dreamily. "That sounds lovely," she sighed wistfully. "Maybe he should give Will some pointers. We haven't been out in a _long_ time."

"But you and Will have never had anything happen in your relationship that ended it and then restarted it," Penelope pointed out. The words fell heavily from her mouth and she found herself staring at the straw in her drink. Her index finger traced around the edge of the cup and she became lost in thought again. Derek was so kind, so attentive, so _forgiving_… She still hadn't admitted it to him, but she had yet to forgive herself for the miscarriage. It haunted her every day. She slept much sounder now that Derek was sleeping beside her again, but she still woke with a start occasionally in the middle of the night, breathing in short, gasp-like bursts.

"Garcie?"

JJ's voice broke through her daze and brought her back to reality. She shook her head and looked at her. "Oh, sorry Jayje," she murmured. "I was just thinking…"

"What were you thinking about?"

Another moment of silence covered the room and Penelope leaned her elbows against her desk. "I feel like I'm not worthy of him," she said quietly.

"What?" JJ squeaked. "Why on earth would you think something like that? That has to be the most off base thing I've heard you say in a long time! You and Derek are the most together couple I've ever seen. You're so in tune with one another that –"

Penelope held up her hands. "No, no," she said hastily. "What I mean JJ, is that I…I haven't even begun to forgive myself for what happened to the first baby. I don't know how he can forgive me when I haven't even begun to forgive myself. It's not as bad as when I was hiding it from people, but it doesn't change that it was my fault!"

"No," JJ stated firmly. "That kind of thinking is just not good for you or your little girl. You are not responsible. Something like that isn't anything you could've controlled. You've got to stop blaming yourself, Garcie." Her look was one of compassion and she took Penelope's hand. "You're about to be a Mommy, Penelope and one of the things you've got to teach your children is when to let go." She smiled warmly at her. "And you have to learn to let go of this pain and guilt. It's just something you've got to do."

Tears filled Penelope's eyes and she smiled at JJ. "I want to get past it," she said earnestly. "I want it more than anything."

"Let your heart guide you," she said gently. "I know it sounds weird and metaphorical and Disney-movie like, but sometimes those are the best ways to describe it."

Pulling her into a hug, Penelope held JJ close and said, "Thanks Jayje."

"And it's going to get better," JJ said as she was pulling back. "And the first step?" She paused for effect. "Talk to Derek. He's the best person to help you get through this."

Penelope nodded and wiped the stray tears from her face. Sniffling, she glanced at the clock. "Speaking of Derek…I wonder where he and the boys are. I know Hotch is in meetings all day, but Rossi and Reid? They're not doing anything."

JJ just smiled. "They're probably doing manly men things together," she said.

Taking a sip of her water once again, Penelope laughed. "Manly men things," she sighed. Looking at JJ in the eye, she added, "And thanks JJ. You know, for picking me up out of the ground." She smiled sheepishly.

"Anytime PG," she murmured with a glint in her eyes.

XXXXX

"Anything yet?" Derek hollered, lifting his head out of the bushes in front of Penelope's old apartment building. He and Rossi and Reid were all on their hands and knees looking for the ring box he'd planned on presenting her months ago. Now he planned on giving it to her tonight at just the right moment. He was thrilled and nervous, all at the same time.

Rossi groaned. "Please God tell me you've found something Reid!" he called out. "I'm ruining my trousers!"

"Nothing yet," Reid replied calmly. He actually seemed content with his task that Derek had set him on. He was grinning and rustling around in the nettles in the bushes like a child at play. "But we will find it! I'm sure of it. The spirit of love will lend itself to us."

Rossi's head poked up from the bushes and his brows were twisted in confusion. "_What_ did he just say?" he demanded.

"The spirit of love," Reid repeated. "It's simple: Morgan and Garcia are true love. The ring will come to us. And when it does, Morgan is going to get down on one knee and pull it out and present it to her. Then she'll –"

Derek cut him off. "We know how this goes, Reid," he said. "We don't need a running lesson on it." Grumbling, he continued searching through the bushes. "God, I should've just put this in my –" Before the sentence finished coming out of his mouth, his hand felt a touch of velvet underneath his fingers.

"Find something, Morgan?" Rossi called. "You stopped awfully suddenly mid speech."

Jumping up triumphantly from the ground, he bellowed, "Hell yes!" The small box was touched up with dust, but when he opened it, the diamond was still as gorgeous as it had been when he'd last laid eyes on it. "Rossi, Reid! I've got it! I found the ring!"

Rossi and Reid rose to their feet and dusted themselves off, convening around him to look closer at the gem. It twinkled underneath the light of the sun and all three men smiled. "Damn, that's a nice ring," Rossi whistled, clapping Derek on the back. "You done good, Morgan."

"You think so?" Derek asked, hope in his voice. He wanted it to be perfect because Penelope was his perfection. She deserved the best in life. "I want this to be…beautiful."

Reid smiled. "It will be," he said confidently. "Now we must get you back to work so you can act like nothing is wrong whilst you _really_ plan how to make this night wonderful."

"Humph, yeah," Rossi mumbled. "And we're going to get to go back to work and figure out how to get the grass stains out of our bush-whacked knees."

Derek just laughed, his thoughts entirely consumed with how the night would go and how he was going to ask Penelope to marry him.


	12. Nothing Less Than The Best

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**DATE NIGHT! Hope you all will enjoy :) Thanks for the reviews!**

Penelope was getting ready to go on her date with Derek that night and she was sliding her body into a soft and silky black dress with a plunging neckline. She decided she wanted to pull her hair back into a ponytail with soft tendrils framing her face. For some reason she was thrilled that she looked so good. Getting ready for her date with Derek was just beginning the fluttering in her stomach. She could only imagine how the night would end.

A knock sounded from the door and she called out, "Come in!"

The door to the room opened and Derek stepped in, his gray button down unbuttoned to show off the very top of his chest and his dress slacks looking polished and tailored. He grinned. "Hey Baby Girl," he said, coming up behind her. He put his arms around her from behind and kissed the crook of her neck. "You look beautiful."

"Why, thank you," she murmured with a smile. She turned her face so that she could reach his lips and planted a quick peck on them. "You're looking pretty sharp yourself, SSA Morgan. And you smell fantastic…are you wearing the stuff I bought you?"

He nodded. "I do love this stuff," he admitted. "You sure know how to pick your stuff."

"I love you," she stated simply. "I want to give you nothing less than the best."

Smiling, he murmured, "I don't know what I did to deserve you." He took her hand and kissed her knuckles.

Immediately Penelope's mind shot to her conversation with JJ from earlier in the day. She couldn't stand that Derek thought he was less than deserving of her. It reminded her of all the guilt she still held and that she hadn't told him about it. But JJ's conversation with her also reminded her of the words she'd said about how she needed to learn to let go.

_Let your heart guide you…I know it sounds weird and metaphorical and Disney-movie like, but sometimes those are the best ways to describe it…_

She turned in his arms and smiled. "You're the most wonderful man," she said taking his face in both her hands. "You're kind and brave and listen to people when they're hurting. You deserve the best in the world. I don't find myself feeling like I deserve _you_, but I'm trying…I'm trying to forgive myself for what happened to our baby. And with time, I'll learn to let go of that guilt. And do you know why?" She looked at his face, so full of love and compassion, and waited for him to nod. "Because I have you. You give me the strength to keep going and without you I would never be able to do it. I know I can rely on you for support and you will always be there for me."

Derek was silent for a minute and then he kissed her softly. Not a rough, passionate kiss, but a kiss that was tender and gentle and full of love. Her lips responded to his and for a moment they just remained wrapped together. "I will always be here for you, whether you need me or not," he whispered. "I love you, Penelope Garcia."

"I love _you_, Derek Morgan," she responded. Glancing at the clock, she added, "And we'd better get going or we'll be late for dinner."

He grinned. "I'm ready to go," he murmured, offering his hand and leading her out of the room.

XXXXX

"Morgan party, we have reservations for eight o'clock," Derek said when he led Penelope into Le Royal where they were having dinner. It was an expensive, exquisite French restaurant where the waiters were all from France. Derek had picked it especially so Penelope could order in French. She loved speaking the language, but almost never got to use it.

The hostess nodded, although she began to eye Derek up and down with a perusing glance. However, when she saw that Derek and Penelope had their arms wrapped sensually around the other's waist her face fell drastically.

"Right this way," she said grudgingly.

She led the two to their table. Once there, Derek pulled out Penelope's chair for her and kissed the top of her head. He proceeded to sit down across from her and smile. The lighting of the restaurant was dim, most of the light coming from a candle that was in the center of the table. It was casting its light on Penelope's face, showing the soft pink of her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes.

"You look so beautiful tonight," he said softly.

Giggling, she said, "You already said that, Hot Stuff. Losing your memory on me?"

He snickered. "I can't control it," he said simply. "I just want to keep telling you because it's so true." Underneath the table, his foot slid up against hers and he gave her another brilliant, thousand watt grin.

Her cheeks began to heat up and she smiled. He was treating her like a princess and it felt like a much lighter, happier turn for the night. Before she could say anything, their waiter showed up.

"_Bonjour Monsieur and Madame_," he said, smiling lightly.

Penelope looked up and smiled at him, starting off with her flawless French. Derek had no idea what she was saying and what the smiling waiter was responding with, but he couldn't stop grinning at seeing his Baby Girl so happy. When she turned to him, she tilted her head to the side and asked, "Do you want wine, baby?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you sure?" he asked. "I don't want you to be upset with me drinking when you can't because of junior."

The waiter's eyes brightened and he turned to Penelope, babbling off in French to her about something. She returned with an answer just as bubbly and he grinned at her. Walking off, he was shaking his head and smiling.

"What were you saying?" Derek asked amused.

She smiled. "He asked if I was pregnant and I told him yes," she said. "But other than that I ordered you a glass of wine and me a glass of water."

"Oh…" he murmured. Taking her hand, he added, "Thanks for the wine."

"I can't believe you thought I would mind if you had a glass of wine," she laughed. "Me and the little baby girl are happy seeing you happy. If you want wine, then you shall have wine."

Their waiter was back after a couple more minutes with a glass of water for Penelope and a glass of wine for Derek. He smiled and asked Penelope another question, Derek assumed it was what they were having for dinner. Sure enough, the waiter was scribbling away on a pad as Penelope rambled on. Derek leaned on his elbow on the table and stared dreamily at her as she spoke in one of the languages of love. She spoke so flawlessly and with so much elegance that he couldn't stop ogling at her.

"_Merci_," she said as the waiter closed his leather covered pad and took off. When he was gone, she noticed Derek's dreamy stare and laughed nervously. "What? What are you looking at?" she asked. "Is there something in my teeth?" She grinned and showed her teeth to him.

He chuckled at her face she'd made. "No," he murmured. "I was just thinking."

She brought her glass to her lips and took a sip of her water. "Hmm," she mused. "What were you thinking about?"

"About how happy I am," he said softly, his eyes meeting hers and holding her gaze. His eyes glittered and she sucked in a breath at the powerful connection between them at that very moment. It was just the two of them in the room at the moment; everyone else had faded into the background and were fuzzy compared to them. Derek's larger hand took her smaller one in his and gave it a squeeze. "I was so miserable without you for those three months. This night…it makes me _unbelievably _happy that I have you back."

She nodded, her face softening. "Me too," she whispered. "I hated it. Every single minute of it." Smirking a little bit, she added, "Whatever happened to Jackie? Did you ever hear from here after she stormed out of your house?"

"_Our_ house," he corrected her, giving her a pointed look. "It's your house too."

"Fine," she said. "Our house. But you're avoiding my question." It was her turn to give him a pointed look. And judging from her glare, she was going to get an answer out of him.

He blew out a sigh. "I honestly have no idea," he said truthfully. "I never saw her again after that."

Penelope laughed. "I can't believe you never heard from her again," she said, sipping her water leisurely. "She doesn't look like the kind of girl who would let you go quietly. I see her as the kind of girl who would graffiti your –" He gave her a look and she covered her mouth daintily with her hand. "Whoops," she giggled. It was amusing to watch his eyebrows shoot into a panicked furrow. "_Our_ house."

Derek snorted. "Jackie was…ugh, she wasn't you," he grumbled, gulping his wine. When he'd finished swallowing, he added, "But I don't want to talk about her. I want to talk about us."

A devilishly seductive smile covered her face and she rubbed her foot against his ankle this time. "Okay then," she murmured. "Because I want to talk about us too."

XXXXX

"Whew!" Penelope yawned as she and Derek exited the jazz club around midnight. "I'm beat. Derek Morgan, you must be trying to kill me with exhaustion." She giggled as she looped her arm through his and leaned her head against his arm. They were making their way down the street-lamp lit street towards the car. Above them the moon was casting pale yellow light down on them and there was a slight breeze in the air.

Beside her Derek laughed and planted a kiss on the top of her head. "Nah," he said. "I'm trying to kill you…just tucker you out and make you all giggly."

"I'm not giggly!" But sure enough a giggle escaped her lips, proving his point.

"Darling, being up too late, alcohol or no, you are slap-happy," he stated. "I could tell you the lamest knock-knock joke in the world and you would think it's the funniest damn thing you've ever heard."

She was laughing uncontrollably now and he unhooked his arm from hers so he could stop them and wrap her in both his arms. Tears had started to run down her cheeks from the laughter and he kissed her, muffling the sound. Slowly her laughing faded away and she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him back.

"You always know how to shut me up," she said teasingly when the kiss broke.

He smirked. "My job occasionally," he explained. "But I also have to ask you something." Putting a hand over her very small bump where their child was, he began to descend to one knee. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth formed a small "o" shape.

"Penelope Garcia," he began, producing the small velvet box from his pocket. He'd managed to get most of the dirt off of it, but it looked slightly banged up still. When he opened it though, the flawless sparkle of the diamond glittered up at her. "I have wanted to ask you this for years, but have never had the courage. I was going to ask you six months ago, but the timing didn't really work out all that well. So I'm going to finally do the right thing and ask you now because I can't spend another moment of my life without you as my wife. You make me smile when no one else can and I need to hear your voice or I go crazy. I want to give you and our baby nothing less than the best and I want our lives to be intertwined for the rest of our lives." He paused, smiling hopefully up at her glassy eyes. "Baby Girl, will you marry me?"

She didn't even hesitate to nod vigorously. "Yes," she murmured, the tears now trailing down her cheeks. "A thousand times, yes." She allowed him to slide the ring on her finger before taking his face in her hands. "Get up here you silly man so I can kiss you!"

Grinning, he jumped to his feet and pulled her towards him, lifting her of her feet and kissing her fiercely. When their lips broke apart, they rested their foreheads together and stood with their eyes closed for a moment, both of them connected in a bond that ran deeper than anything tangible. "I love you," she murmured.

Neither of them saw the four approaching figures that were closing in on them.


	13. Attack: Part 2

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Sorry to leave you guys on a cliffhanger last time, but it had to be done. I know from a lot of your reviews that you guys are afraid I'm going to make Penelope lose this baby, but to quell your fears, both of them will be fine. I'm mean, but not THAT mean :) Thanks again for the kind reviews and I hope you enjoy…well, maybe not enjoy this chapter…it's kind of brutal :(**

"Well, well," an unpleasantly familiar memorable voice snickered behind Penelope and Derek. Her head snapped away from him and her blood ran frigid at the owner of the unwelcome voice. "Didn't I tell you to stay away from this pretty boy here?" Around him there were three other men and all of them looked like lions circling their prey, ready to attack them at any second.

Immediately Derek was in front of her, shielding her with his body. A ferocious glare lit up his face and his jaw began to clench dangerously, a sure sign he was about to lose control of his rage. "You're the son of a bitch who beat her, aren't you?" he spat with rage.

Panicking, Penelope put a hand on Derek's arm in an attempt to calm him down. If there were three men who would fight him, she highly doubted it was going to end well for him. He was a superb hand to hand fighter, but three obviously well-built brutal men. He would get beaten to a pulp even if he fought with all his energy. "Derek, don't," she murmured, her voice filled with worry. She was deathly afraid he would ignore her pleas. "Please."

"This is the bastard who hurt you!" he growled. His voice was trembling with anger. "I should kill him for what he did to you. He could've caused you to miscarry!" All four of the men snickered in front of them.

"So…you _obviously_ didn't listen to me the first time," the man who'd beat her said with a smirk of amusement. "Tell me: how far along is junior?"

Penelope ignored his comment and said, "Please, we don't know who you are and we don't want and trouble. Just let us leave! Please!"

He was clearly the leader of the pack. The first time she'd encountered him his face had been covered underneath a hat and she hadn't gotten a good look at him. Now that she could see his face, she saw that his eyes were hard as steel; no mercy in them whatsoever.

"You may not know he we are, but our boss sure knows who you are. And boy did you two piss him off."

Derek was fast losing his patience and a handle on his fury. "Who is your boss?" he asked. "Care to share?"

Penelope's attacker shook his head. "Tut, tut, SSA Morgan," he said, wagging his finger in the air. "You know we can't spoil the surprise." Looking on either side of him, he added, "But small talk is not what we're here for." He snapped his fingers. "You know what to do boys."

"No!" Now Penelope was truly terrified. She tried to grab Derek's arm, but he was already springing into action.

"Penelope, run! Go!"

She was torn. Did she run or did she stay and try to help him?

Her hesitation was too long and before she could react for either option, a pair of iron-strong arms grabbed her from behind; it was fifth assailant they had not seen with the original band of four. He'd likely been waiting to grab her. Locking her to his chest with her arms forced behind her back, he put his chin in the crook of her neck and whispered maliciously in her ear, "Hello there, love." His breath was hot against the skin of her neck and he hissed, "Don't even thinking about moving, love. I don't particularly want to slit your pretty neck." The next moment a cold blade was against her throat, posed to cut her jugular at any second. She couldn't stop the small whimper that she elicited. But when she heard the first punch from the group of brawling men, her heart stopped in her chest. Instead of three against one, the number had just jumped to four.

The odds were now worse.

"Derek!" she screamed. Tears filled her eyes and slipped down her cheeks and she prayed someone would hear her cries. However, the street they were on wasn't heavy on foot traffic and it was after midnight.

They were likely on their own unless a miracle occurred.

For a few moments Derek was able to hold his own against the men, managing to land several bone cracking punches, one of which broke a nose. But the moment he tripped and fell to the concrete was his downfall. The kicking began mercilessly.

Penelope couldn't stop screaming, her voice echoing through the empty streets and landing in no one's ears but those of the attackers and Derek. "Stop!" she begged. "Please, stop!" From what she could make out between the circle of four men, Derek's face was streaked with blood. "Please, I'm begging you! Stop hurting him!"

The man restraining her barked a laugh. "Oh, they're not done yet, darling. Just wait until they are. He'll look all nice and black and blue.

Anger flashed through Penelope's fear. "You'll get what you deserve," she hissed. "You'll get it, whether it's a bullet in your brain or a jail cell."

He just laughed again. "Oh dearie, you really have no idea who you're dealing with," he said. "Maybe I should just kill you now so we don't have to deal with your mouthy ass again."

The fear was back and swallowed the anger. "Please," she whimpered. "I'm pregnant. Please, don't kill us."

For a split second the man froze and didn't say anything else. When he spoke though, it came as a rough grunt. "We're not supposed to kill you anyway."

In front of her the beating had stopped and Derek was unconscious on the ground. He looked unrecognizable and Penelope let out a strangled cry that caused the entire group of thugs to laugh like they'd heard the most hilarious, gut-busting joke in the world.

"He'll be fine," one of them snickered. "A little sore, but fine."

She looked at them through her swollen eyes and wept. "Why are you doing this?" she cried. "Why are you hurting us?"

Another one of them sighed. "Just following orders," he said as if it were a satisfactory answer.

"Who wants you to do this?" she growled. "Tell me!"

"No can do, sweetheart."

"I'm not your sweetheart," she spat, earning more laughter.

The leader who'd beat her and now Derek shrugged. "It doesn't matter," he said. "You'll be seeing us again. Not for a little while, but soon. Unless you leave your dearly beloved. Then and only then will the attacks stop. You've been warned."

Before she could respond, a fist slammed into her face and she dropped to the concrete, a mere few feet from Derek.

XXXXX

"So, why didn't you beat the bitch?" the man behind the enormous mahogany desk asked impatiently as he smoked a cigar. His five thugs he'd sent out to send another warning to Penelope Garcia and Derek Morgan had returned only moments ago and had just reported that instead of beating the woman, they'd let her go without a scratch, merely knocking her out cold.

His lead man, the one who'd been sent with the first warning of beating the Garcia woman, Charlie glared over at one of their companions, O'Malley. "We planned on beating her after we knocked her screaming ass out, but _O'Malley_ here said we couldn't."

"Oh, really?" The man behind the desk frowned after pausing and raised a brow at the Irish man. "Care to tell me why you disobeyed by orders, O'Malley?"

Charlie interrupted O'Malley and answered snidely, "Why else, boss? That damn Catholicism of his! The bitch is pregnant and if we beat her we risk 'killing' the brat! I swear if he wasn't so good at picking a safe, I'd take him out myself."

"She's pregnant you say?" Suddenly the man behind the desk was interested and he leaned forward, both his brows raised this time.

"Why's that important, boss?" O'Malley asked.

He avoided answering him for a moment before saying, "Someone go fetch Jackie for me. I have a very important question to ask her."

Moments later Jackie entered the room. She smiled when she saw her father. "Daddy! What's up?"

A smile lit up his elderly face. "Jackie, sweetheart, how do you feel about being a mother to Derek Morgan's yet to be born child?"

XXXXX

Hotch walked in to find a chaotic BAU in the morning. Immediately JJ and Reid ran up to him and both had panicked looks on their faces. "What is it?" he asked. "What happened?" If both of them looked this worried, something must have happened.

With a hoarse voice, JJ said, "Hotch, last night members of the Alexandrovitch attacked a couple in the street." Her eyes were swimming with unshed tears.

His blood ran cold. But before he could speak, Reid beat him to the punch. "Hotch, the couple they attacked was Morgan and Garcia. They've were taken to the hospital as soon as they were found."

Hotch was silent for a long moment before calming his thoughts that two members of his team, two members of his family had been attacked by the Russian mob known for its brutal beatings. When he finally calmed his mind enough to speak coherently, he said, "We need to go to the hospital."

Reid nodded. "I'll get Rossi and Blake."


	14. Did Jackie Go To The Mob?

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Sorry the last chapter was so mean :( I appreciate all the reviews…I know I say that a lot, but it's true :) So I'm going to keep repeating it! Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

"Miss? Miss, can you hear me?"

Penelope's eyes began to flutter open and she moaned in pain softly. Her head was pounding and she mumbled, "Wh- what?" Blinking several times, she tried sitting up and her vision started to spin. When it finished, she saw the blinking lights of an ambulance and then a group of paramedics around Derek. Immediately she tried to jump to her feet. Her mind became focused entirely on her beaten fiancé. "Derek!" she cried. "_Derek_!"

The paramedic who was at her side held her back and took her wrist in his hand to check her pulse. "Miss, I need you to stop struggling," he said. "He's being taken care of. I need you to tell me what happened to you both. The police will take your statement, but I need to know how they hurt you."

Still looking at Derek, she wept, "They only hit me in the face. But they beat him! I'm fine. You have to help Derek!"

"I told you, Miss," he told her calmly. "He's being taken care of. Now, I need to know your name. Who are you and who is the man who you're with?"

She tried desperately to see what was going on with Derek. "My name is Penelope Garcia…that's my fiancé, Derek Morgan," she sniffled. "Please, is he okay?"

"They're taking care of him," he said. "I need you to tell me if there is any condition you have that needs to be acknowledged."

"I – I'm three months pregnant," she told him. Rubbing her tear streaked face, she wept, "Please! Is he going to be okay?"

The paramedic started to stand up and helped her to her feet where she was wobbly due to the fact she was still wearing her high heels. Kicking them off her feet, she managed to break free from the paramedic restraining her to rush to Derek's side. The paramedics working on him had lifted him onto a stretcher and were moving him towards the ambulance. She grabbed one of the paramedics' arms and begged, "Please, tell me if he's going to be okay." Derek's face was battered and his eyes were swollen shut. He had very obvious bruising all over and his mouth and nose both had blood trailing out of them.

"You've got to move out of the way, ma'am," she said, moving her out of the way gently. "We can let you know how he is when you both get to the hospital." Penelope put her head in her hands and wept even harder. "We need to get you to the other ambulance."

"He has to be okay," she sobbed as the paramedics helped her onto another stretcher.

XXXXX

"We're here to see Penelope Garcia and Derek Morgan," Hotch said as he and the rest of the team entered the ER area. The ER nurse looked up at him and raised a brow. "They were attacked. Please, we're their team members…FBI." He brought out his badge and flashed it at her skeptical face.

"Ah, I see," she said. "They were brought in an hour ago. Ms. Garcia is in an examination room right now while Mr. Morgan is getting looked at by the doctors. She rose from her seat and motioned for them to follow her. "The doctor can tell you more."

As they made their way through the stark white corridors of the hospital, JJ wrung her hands together and wiped her eyes. Reid put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "They'll be okay," he said confidently.

"How do you know?" JJ asked with a sniffle. "What if –" She sucked in a breath. "What if Penelope lost this baby too? It would kill her."

"She'll be okay," Reid said. "I'm sure of it." Although he was speaking with confidence though, JJ could tell he was nervous.

The nurse stopped in front of a doctor and introduced Hotch to him before going back in the direction they'd come from. "Hello sir, I'm Doctor Goldman, the physician working on Ms. Garcia and Mr. Morgan's cases," he said, extending his hand and shaking Hotch's.

"I'm Agent Hotchner and this is the rest of my team," Hotch said. "We, along with Derek and Penelope work with the FBI. What's the status on them? Are they going to be alright?"

Dr. Goldman nodded and said, "They're both going to be fine. Mr. Morgan is fairly banged up, which is good considering he could've had damage to his brain. But he will be fine with a few weeks of recuperation. Ms. Garcia is fine as well with only a bruised eye. We're keeping her overnight along with her fiancé seeing as she's pregnant. The baby is completely fine. We were concerned at first, but there's still a strong heartbeat and everything is normal."

JJ breathed out a huge sigh of relief and rubbed her temples while Rossi put a calming hand on her back. "Thank God," she whispered.

Rossi turned to the doctor and asked, "Can we see them?"

Dr. Goldman nodded. "Yes, Ms. Garcia is in the room down the hall at the end," he said. "Mr. Morgan is not awake yet, but I want only two at a time seeing him."

"Thanks you," Hotch said. The team started down the hall until they reached the room to which they'd been directed. Inside Penelope was sitting on the bed, her knees pulled up to her chest and her face weeping into them. Her head shot up when she saw the team and her lips trembled before she spoke. Both her eyes were filled with tears and one of them was black and purple from a fist that had slammed into her.

JJ was by her side in an instant. "Oh my God, Penelope," she murmured, taking her friends hand and giving it a squeeze. "How are you feeling? The doctor said the baby was fine, but I –"

"Th – they beat Derek!" she wept, ignoring the question about herself. "They hurt him because of me!" She continued to weep inconsolably.

Hotch rubbed his face. Penelope needed more time to calm down. Touching JJ's shoulder softly, he murmured, "We're going to be out in the hall…let us know when you've got her calmed down." JJ nodded up at him and went back to trying to calm Penelope down. Hotch, Rossi, Reid, and Blake went back into the hallway.

"This is getting out of control," Rossi grumbled, looking cautiously around the hospital wing, as if anyone in the area could be a potential villain. "Aaron, we've got to do something before one of them is killed."

Hotch nodded. "We should get a protective detail for their house," he said. "And now that we know it's the Alexandrovitch's after them, we have something to go off of. Rossi, do you know anyone in that area of the mob?"

Rossi shook his head. "The Russians weren't my area of expertise," he said. "I'll ask around, but I don't know if anyone will be able to give me any information."

"God, I didn't even have any time to do any digging without permission," Reid said, his shoulders sagging. He looked at his teamates' looks of confusion and clarified for them. "I told Morgan that I would do a little looking on my own since Strauss took us off the case.

"Who could possibly want this to happen to them?" Blake asked. "It's not like they're involved with anything with the mob."

Reid had begun to pace and snapped his fingers as he came to a conclusion. "Guys, wait!" he said, his eyes lighting up with realization. "What if it's not the mob who is actually after them, but someone who hired them to do it?"

The other three looked at him with skepticism. "You think someone went to the mob to have them split up?" Rossi asked.

Reid nodded vigorously. "Very possibly," he said. "How many people do we know who hated Penelope and would do anything to see her out of the picture?" His team mates looked lost now and he added, "Guys, Jackie! Morgan's ex-girlfriend who he dated before he got back together with Garcia. JJ and I were talking about her a few months ago and how we thought it was odd that she just dropped off the face of the earth without making a word. What if it was her?"

"Er, Reid," Blake began, "I don't think Jackie was the type to go to the mob because a man broke up with her. That's –"

Rossi interrupted to finish her sentence for her. "Crazy," he said.

"I don't think she would do something like that, Reid," Hotch said in agreement. "It's just too far-fetched."

Reid shook his head. "Hotch, humor me," he said. "Give me a day or two to do a little digging into her. I feel like she's got something to do with this."

Hotch stared at him, but eventually sighed and nodded. "Alright," he said reluctantly. "But no more than forty eight hours. If it's a dead end, I don't want us spending any more time on it than necessary."

"I'm going to get started right away," he said, starting off in the way they'd come. "I'm going to get a tech analyst and we'll get started right away."

The three watched him go. "Meanwhile, we'd better go check on Morgan," Hotch said.

Rossi nodded. "I'll see if I can help JJ take care of Penelope," he said as he split ways with Blake and Hotch.

XXXXX

_The Previous Evening_

"What are you talking about?" Jackie asked, tilting her head to the side as her father finished asking the question about whether or not she wanted to be a mother.

Her father smiled at her. "Penelope Garcia and Derek Morgan have not heeded my…suggestions that they stay away from one another," he said. "And now Ms. Garcia is pregnant."

Jackie's face turned red with anger. "She's _what_?" she squeaked.

"You heard me," he said. "Penelope is pregnant. But the more important question is: do you want the baby? Do you want to mother Derek Morgan's child?"

Blinking twice, she felt a small smile creeping onto her face. "More than anything," she said wistfully. "Derek would make such beautiful children. He would be a _wonderful_ father!"

He shook his head. "My darling, I want you to know that Derek Morgan would not be able to be a father to this baby," he said. "You would be raising him or her on your own. We'll have to find a way to keep the Garcia woman from knowing."

"And how are we going to do this?"

A slow grin went up his face. "We're going to have to kill her and Derek Morgan," he said maliciously.


	15. Anton Alexandrovich

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Thank you all for the reviews! I'm so happy whenever I read them :) I also wanted to let you all know that I apologize if the dark content of this makes you uncomfortable. My goal with this story is to have two team members on the receiving end of an unsub rather than citizens. It's gonna end happily…pinky swear!**

**I did divulge to one or two people that Penelope gets a shining moment when it comes to Jackie…if you want to know what the lines of this shining moment will be, see Chapter 13 of my story "The Obsession of Derek Morgan" for an idea :)**

**Anyway, thanks so much for the support, reviews, and readership! I love you all! Here's the chapter!**

"Kevin, what are you doing right now?" Reid asked as he jogged into the BAU. He was intent on drinking mass amounts of coffee for the full extent of his time Hotch had given him to look into the possibility of Jackie being the culprit. No sleep would come to him until the timer ran out.

Kevin Lynch looked up at him from his seat at a computer he was fixing for another agent. "What can I do for you, Dr. Agent Reid?" he asked.

"I need your assistance for the next forty eight hours," he said swiftly. "We've got a lot to do, so get a pot of coffee going or down a few Red Bulls. We're going to Garcia's office."

Lynch raised a brow at him. "Er…is there some reason _Penelope_ isn't helping you with this?" he asked. His breakup with Penelope had been a chilly affair, but he'd been helpful in certain cases, so Reid was able to tolerate his greasy hair, terrible choice in shirts, and nasally voice. "She is better than me at this stuff…even if I'm pretty good."

"Both Penelope and Derek were attacked by the Alexandrovitch family," Reid said bluntly. "So this is where you come in. You're going to help me with a lead I'm already sitting on."

Kevin jumped to his feet. "I'm at your service," he said quickly.

Reid nodded once. "Good," he said. "Let's get to work."

Once the two were sitting in Penelope's office, Kevin immediately got to work getting into the extensive system Garcia had set up. As he did, Reid took the opportunity to observe Lynch. It was obvious he was still in love with Penelope. An interest sparked in his brain and he couldn't stop the question that popped out of his mouth the next moment.

"You knew it was Morgan she left you for…didn't you?" Lynch's silence told it all and he said, "You were the only one who knew."

Lynch, still typing away at the keyboard, snorted. "Yeah," he huffed. "I knew. But the thing that you – amazing profiler that you are – failed to figure out is that she _told_ me she was leaving me for Agent Morgan. I was trying hard to get us back on track after the botched proposal and when it seemed like we might be getting back on track, she left me." He paused again. "But before she even told me, I saw them. Agent Morgan told her everything about how he felt and there was that first kiss stuff that obviously blew my first kiss with her out of the water. It was obvious to me even when the relationship was in full swing that she always belonged to him. I just didn't want to admit it to anyone. Not even myself."

Reid was shocked at the amount of actual substance that came out of his mouth. He'd never thought Lynch had that much emotional thought in his head. And even more shocking: he felt sympathy for the man.

Before he could express any sympathy or pity for Lynch though, a beep occurred and he said, "I'm in." Swiveling the chair to look at Reid, he asked, "Now, what am I looking for?"

Reid sat forward in his chair, his mind completely on the task at hand. "What we need to do first is do a complete background check on Jackie Stone," he directed.

"Agent Morgan's ex-girlfriend?" Lynch raised a brow.

"Yes." Looking at the tech's perplexed expression, he sighed. "Yeah, I know. The rest of the team thought it was out of proportion just as much as you. But she's going to be the star of our next two days, so get used to it."

Though he was confused, Lynch did as he was told and asked, "What do you want me looking into right now?"

"Start with her history as a child and tell me what you find," he said absentmindedly. "We've got to start from the very beginning."

Biting his lip, Lynch did as he was told.

"Jackie is a woman who takes charge," Reid said aloud, not necessarily to anyone in the room. It was mostly for his own thought process. "She demands attention and will do anything to be in control."

"So why would she go to the mob?" Lynch asked. "Wouldn't she just do things herself? Take matters into her own hands?"

Reid shook his head. "No, no," he said. "You might think that, but someone like her, even though she has a dominant personality, needs someone else to do the work for her. She needs things to go her way, but she can't get her hands dirty. It's just not who she is." He wrote on the white board and stuck the marker behind his ear when he was done. Folding his hands together in front of him, he began to pace. "But why would she go to the mob?" he asked aloud. "_That's _what doesn't make sense. Those men won't let her do any of the leading there and that's something she just can't have." He took a sip of his coffee and rubbed his face tiredly. "Lynch, we've got some work to do."

"Then what's next?"

XXXXX

Neither Reid nor Lynch had gotten any sleep in nearly twenty hours. Reid had been bouncing ideas off of the technical analyst the entire time. They'd gone through much of Jackie's life, but so far there was nothing that indicated she was anything other than normal.

However, the story changed when Lynch frowned and said, "Er, Dr. Reid. You might want to take a look at this."

"What is it?" he asked, rubbing his face tiredly. "More to make this idea even more fruitless? God, I never should have thought this was a possibility. It's just my lingering dislike for the woman still – "

Lynch shook his head. "No, no!" he said. "This…this is really interesting. According to Jackie's bank statements and financials, a man named Anton Alexandrovitch – your mob boss – paid for it all from his personal accounts. We're talking everything: tuition for both her private schooling and Georgetown, the payment on her condo, the building costs for that gallery of hers."

Reid sipped his coffee again. "Lynch," he said, "you're a genius!"

"Well, actually –" Lynch started to say with a hint of a smile.

"How could we not have figured this out sooner?" Reid cried, leaping to his feet. He began to pace. "The reason she went to the mob is because she's _part_ of the mob! Do you have an address on the mother? We should try and contact her. If she's not married to Alexandrovitch, there might be something she's willing to tell us something."

Lynch nodded. "Okay," he said. "I'm on it."

XXXXX

_Two Days Later_

Blinding white light was the first thing Derek saw when his overly swollen eyes started to drift open. A groan escaped his lips and he managed to open his eyes wide enough to see his surroundings. He was in a hospital room and the clock read 11:40. Judging by the darkness that was outside the shades, it was nighttime. At first when he tried to move his head to look around more the pain was so intense he grimaced. Finally he managed to move and when he glanced to his right he saw his fiancée curled up in a chair by the window, a light blanket covering her sleeping form. With a dry mouth and raspy throat, he coughed, "Baby Girl?"

Penelope jumped awake, her eyes startled. But when she saw that Derek was awake, she jumped up in her seat and was at his side. She sat on the edge of the bed and took his face in her hands with the lightest touch she could manage. Tears filled her eyes and she bent her head as if in shame. "Derek…" she whispered tearfully. She choked on a sob.

He willed his arm to rise so he could tilt her chin up to examine her bruised eye. "Baby, I'm so sorry this happened to you again," he murmured. Gritting his teeth, he added, "I'll kill him. I swear I'll kill him."

"I'm fine!" she cried. "It's _you_ who's been hurt! You were out cold for two days! They could've killed you, Derek! _Killed_ you, do you hear me? I can't have that happen!"

Shaking his head, he said, "No, they didn't kill me. And they won't. We're not going to give in to them. We'll find the sons of bitches."

"Derek, the rest of the team found out who it was that attacked us and who's stalking us," she argued, wiping her face. "It's the mob, the Russian mob! These guys aren't going to let up until we're both dead." He tried to raise his arm again to put a hand on her cheek, but she took it gently and put it back at his side. "Don't!" she scolded. "You're just going to hurt yourself."

He shook his head again. "No, I'm not," he scoffed. "We're going to be fine. We're going to catch them and we're going to have our life together uninterrupted." He smiled, even though it hurt like hell.

Leaning her forehead against his, she sniffled. "What are we going to do until then, Baby?" she asked. "I heard them…they said they would be back at some point in the future. I can't handle this with the baby. I can't let anything happen to her or to you."

"Baby Girl," he said, taking both cheeks in his hands, "it's going to be okay. We're going to figure this out and I'm going to keep you safe. Both of you."

She met his eyes and looked at him unblinking for a few long moments. "I love you," she whispered. "Sometimes I hate how much I love you." She kissed him softly.

"I love you too, Baby Girl," he said with a grin.

As they were sitting wrapped in their own little cocoon of a world, a knock sounded from the door and they looked up to see Hotch and Blake standing in the doorway.

"Can we come in?" Blake asked softly.

Penelope moved to sit in a position that she could see Hotch and Blake and wiped her eyes. "Hey guys," she said hoarsely. "Of course you can come in." When the pair came in, both of their expressions grim, she rubbed her eyes. "What? What's going on?"

Hotch crossed his arms over his chest. "We've got some developments on your case," he said stiffly. "You both might want to sit tight."


	16. A New Development

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**I know everyone wants to see Jackie's ass getting whooped and I'm excited to write it :) It's coming, pinky promise! Thanks for the reviews again and I hope you enjoy!**

**In other news, I have a new Morgan/Garcia story up called "Losing Everything" so check that out if you are interested :)**

**In addition to the new story and thank yous, I wanted to give a shout-out to Handsome-uks for being a kindred spirit and to Kimd33, Jenny Crum, and CeeCee333 for reviewing every chapter every time. You all are awesome people!**

"What kind of development?" Penelope asked, a deep pit forming in her stomach and fear filling her heart.

Hotch took a longer moment of silence and Blake stepped up to tell the tale. "Reid had a theory that he wanted to explore, so he and Kevin Lynch worked on it for a day and half," she began. "Reid thought there was a certain person who might be the one who went to the mob and he and Lynch found that this person didn't just hire the Russians; they're _part_ of the mob."

"You keep avoiding using a pronoun to describe this person," Derek said. "Why do I get the distinct feeling this person is a woman you're talking about?"

"Because it is a woman." Blake didn't waste any time or pull any hesitant punches. "Guys, this person is Jackie…your ex-girlfriend," she said.

"How is Jackie part of the Russian mob?" Penelope asked with a hard tone in her voice. She was so fuming mad that one dumped woman would try and attack the two of them due to a breakup. It was unreal. Women didn't go to the mob when they got dumped…did they?

Hotch took over. "Reid will be visiting with Jackie's mother to get the full story, but it looks as if Anton Alexandrovitch might be Jackie's father," he explained. "There was no father on her birth certificate, but he has paid for her schooling, her condo, her gallery." He shook his head. "It would be wise to move somewhere else for now. I also think we should get you a protective detail."

Penelope and Derek exchanged a look. "Hotch, we need to put the entire detail on Penelope. I'll be fine without one," he said gruffly. "We need to make sure that they can't –"

"Me?" she squeaked. "Derek, we have to keep you safe too!"

"I'm not as important as you and the baby!" he argued back. "I can handle myself."

Biting her lip, she wiped her eyes. "Baby, there were _four_ of them that attacked you tonight," she said. "They beat you and you were unconscious for two days."

"I carry a gun, Penelope," he said, shooting her a look. "I'll be fine."

"You weren't carrying a gun tonight!" By now she had risen to her feet and was facing him, her face contorted in anger. "Do you not understand that you could have had brain damage? What if it had been like that? They could have killed you! You need someone with you for backup!"

Blake and Hotch worked to stop the quarrel in front of them. "Penelope, Derek," Hotch said. "You both need to calm down."

Now Penelope's anger shifted towards Hotch and she whirled to face him. "Do not tell me to calm down!" she spat. "I'm not going to calm down after that bitch tried to have –"

Blake put a comforting hand on her shoulder and Hotch shook his head. "Garcia," he said. "You do need to calm down. But you're right about one thing…Morgan, you're going to have at least one person with you. I'm not letting you go anywhere without a protective detail."

"Hotch man," Derek growled. "I don't need any –"

Hotch held up his hand. "End of discussion," he said. The conversation was cut short by the ringing of his cell phone. Giving both his arguing team members hard looks, he turned away to take the call. Penelope rubbed her teary eyes and Derek's jaw hardened. Blake's eyes flicked between the two of them, but neither spoke, so her unofficial role as peacekeeper Hotch had left her with was unnecessary. An uncomfortable silence covered the room. When the unit chief did return, he sighed and said, "We've got to go check in with Reid. We'll keep you two posted. Until then, I expect you to stay within your protective detail. When you're discharged, we've got you both going to Rossi's…just for the time being."

Derek met Hotch's eyes and he said, "We will." Penelope didn't say anything; she just bit her lip and nodded.

Hotch nodded. "We'll see you later then," he said, he and Blake exiting the room.

When their team mates were gone, Penelope returned to sit on the seat she'd vacated when Derek had woken up. Putting her head in her hands, she let the silence of the room surround her and waited for someone to make a noise. So far the only sound was the beeping of a monitor and a distant intercom crackling. She felt a great need to blow her nose, but she didn't think she could bear to look up for fear of meeting his eyes.

"Penelope?"

Wiping her eyes and sniffling, she looked up at him with her bloodshot eyes and murmured, "Yeah?" Her voice was scraggly when she spoke.

"Will you come here?" Derek patted the spot on the bed where she had vacated. "Please?"

She huffed. "Derek, I swear –"

Cocking an eyebrow, he interrupted her without caring. "Penelope, I'm going to get up and go to you," he threatened. She glared at him and he sat up straighter, throwing the covers off and moving to get up from the bed.

"Fine!" Penelope jumped to her feet and went to his side, pushing him gently back onto the bed. "Don't move." Instead of sitting again, she stood in front of him with her arms crossed. "What do you need?"

Taking both her hands, Derek kissed her knuckles and murmured, "You."

She rolled her eyes. "Derek, stop it," she said. "I'm not in the mood for you to be acting like that."

"What?" he laughed. "Acting like what?"

"All lovey dovey," she said. "You're trying to make this better, but the fact is that you aren't thinking about your safety too. You need to do realize that I can't do this without you. I can't…You are so strong and you're a protector. But four guys against one are not _good_ odds. You need at least one person with you. Why do you think you don't need any of the protection detail?"

He shook his head. "Baby, I don't need a protection detail," he said firmly. "You and the baby are the only people that matter and need all the manpower Hotch is giving. I will do whatever it takes to keep you safe. I will do _anything_."

"I'm just saying you need someone to help you too," she pleaded. "You don't seem to understand that this works both ways for us. Something like this can't happen again. Seeing this happen, seeing what they did to you…that kills me." She sat back down again on his bed, putting both her hands on Derek's shoulders. "You don't get that the way you feel about me having protection is the way I feel about you having protection. We've got to compromise. You need someone with you. If not for you, then do it for me."

Rubbing her cheekbone with his thumb, he said, "Okay. I'll do it."

Penelope smiled and leaned forward to kiss him gently on his bruised lips. "Good," she murmured.

XXXXX

Reid had recruited JJ to come with him to speak to Jackie's mother, Brittany in Alexandria, Virginia. She lived in a dilapidated house in the middle of a suburban neighborhood.

"This certainly doesn't look like a house where someone endeared to the Russians would live," JJ observed as they strode up the walkway towards the front door.

"Let's hope she's pissed enough to tell us some information about the father and daughter duo," Reid said as he knocked on the door.

The woman who opened the house was a middle-aged blonde woman with graying hair. Her blue eyes that looked like they were once full of light had dimmed to a woman who appeared soft-spoken. A cigarette was smoking in her hand and she tilted her head to the side. "Can I help you?" she asked softly.

JJ opened her badge and Reid did the same. "Are you Brittany Stone?" she asked. The woman nodded and JJ added, "I'm Agent Jareau and this is Dr. Reid. We're with the FBI. We were wondering if we could ask you a couple of questions?"

Brittany observed them carefully and nodded once before moving aside for them to come inside. Wordlessly, she led them into her living room. She gestured to the couch. "Go ahead and sit down," she said. "What can I help you with?"

It didn't surprise Reid all that much that the woman wasn't surprised by a visit from the Feds. So since she wasn't wasting any time, neither would he. "Ma'am, we needed to ask you about your daughter, Jackie," he said, diving right into business. "There are a few things regarding –"

Brittany held up a hand and took another drag off of her cigarette. "Wait, what did Jackie do?" she asked frantically. "I was under the impression you were here to talk to me about Anton."

Reid paused and frowned. "Have you had people come to talk to you about Anton before?" he asked.

She snorted. "No, but I figured someone would come sometime," she laughed. "But what is this about my daughter? She's a spoiled brat, but I doubt she's into anything that would have the federal government after her. Trust me. I raised her until she left for school and then her father cut me off, seeing as his darling baby wasn't going to need me anymore. She'd already gotten into Georgetown. There was no need for who her father was to prohibit her "

"So Anton Alexandrovitch _is_ Jackie's father?" JJ asked.

Brittany blew out smoke into the air and nodded. "Yes," she said softly. "And I'm ashamed of myself for ever letting myself think he might actually be in love with me. See, I met Anton in college while I was in New York. He…swept me off my feet. He took me out, he bought me nice things, he read me poetry for Christ's sake!" She rubbed her face. "He told me he loved me. I had no idea who his family was, but when I found out…" Her voice trailed off. "Anyway, he bought me a house when I got pregnant and told me he would come see his daughter. And he did. He loves his daughter. It's probably his only redeemable quality. When he wasn't out mobbing it up." She huffed. "She found a body in his trunk once! I couldn't believe him."

"Why didn't you ever go to the police?" Reid asked.

"Who asks a question like that?" Brittany snapped, tears now coming to her eyes. "Anton is part of the Russian mob! He could easily have taken me out if he wanted to. He would've taken my daughter from me?"

Reid decided to continue his questioning down a very fragile lane. He was going to go to any length to protect Morgan and Garcia. A woman's past wasn't his biggest concern right now and that wasn't a way he usually was.

Strauss had once said the BAU went rogue when it came to family. She couldn't have been more right.

"Why didn't you go to the police?" he asked.

Brittany snubbed out her cigarette and fixed Reid with a look. "He's in the mob, Dr. Reid," she said as if she was talking to an idiot. "He could've taken my life, my daughter." Tears had filled her eyes. "I tried so hard to keep my baby away from that nonsense and I lost her to it. I just don't know where I went wrong." She bent her head and put it in her hands.

JJ took a more gentle approach. "Ms. Stone, the reason why we're here is because we need your help with Jackie," she murmured. "We think she recruited her father and some of the rest of the family to attack an ex-boyfriend and the woman he's about to marry."

"What do you need me to do?" the woman asked.

"We want you to talk to your daughter and find out what her plan is," Reid said swiftly. "Because at this point we don't think anyone else can help us save these two."


	17. Pitocin

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Here's the next one! Thanks for the continued reviews! We've got another time jump again and more on Jackie and her mother...enjoy!**

**This one is also rated M.**

_Five Months Later_

Penelope woke up to feel a few gentle kicks from her belly. She sat up and looked around the room where she and Derek were staying. The two of them had bounced between three different apartments in the last five months and they were now on their fourth one. They'd alternated between them in DC and surrounding cities so that they were still close enough to Quantico to make the commute to work. Each and every place they stayed felt less and less like home to her. They weren't able to bring much of their belongings and she was praying Jackie was caught before she had her baby. Growing up on the road and in fear of the mob were not the most ideal conditions to be raising her daughter in.

"You awake there, Baby Girl?" Derek mumbled sleepily from his spot beside her.

She looked at him and leaned down to kiss the top of his head. "What do you think?" she teased.

Derek popped one of his eyes open and smiled up at her. "I think you're a beautiful lady and I'm lucky as hell to be waking up to your face every morning," he stated, a hint of a laugh in his tone. He sat up and put his hand on the back of her neck. Leaning forward, he pulled her close to him and kissed her deeply. "Morning Baby Girl," he murmured against her lips.

"I'm so glad we don't have to go into work today," she giggled as his lips trailed down the skin of her neck. "Saturday is the best." She let out a very feminine sigh as he started to suckle on her pulse point and his rough hands grasped at the weight of her breasts. Almost instantly she could feel herself becoming aroused. It had been almost two weeks since the last time they'd had sex. Penelope felt herself wanting sex all the time. But with Derek out of town on cases and Agent Anderson her only company when the team was gone, she didn't have access to anything to quell her ripe, rampant sexual desire.

Slowly Derek began to pull her nightie she'd been wearing over her head, baring her breasts to him. He let out a growl of delight and his mouth moved from kissing her neck to rolling his tongue around one of her hardened buds. Gently, he took it between his teeth and tugged at it, sending shock waves all over Penelope's body, from her head, to her core, to her toes. "Don't stop," she gasped. "I swear to God if you -"

He cut her off, returning his lips to her mouth and pulling her into a hot, feral kiss. "You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen," he said hoarsely, running his hand up her right side, cupping her breast in his hand.

She smiled coyly at him. "You're not so bad looking yourself, Handsome," she said breathlessly. Her hands traveled up the planes of his bare chest and she grasped him by the shoulders, holding on for dear life. His hands coasted up her thighs and across the front of her belly that was distended with their child. The skin underneath his fingertips burned with a fiery pain that only his touch could bring and she grasped his wrists in a death grip. "You're going to slow!" she protested.

A laugh bubbled from his smirking lips and he slid his finger to between her thighs, running it up along the damp mound of her underwear. "You want me to pull these off for you, Baby Girl?" he asked huskily. Dumb question; he already knew the answer.

"Yes!" she practically yelled.

He chuckled again and hooked his fingers through the seams of her underwear. With one swift, gentle tug he pulled the undergarments off and flung them across the room. Smiling wickedly, he knelt so his face was between her legs and he looked at her core. She was damp and swollen, just begging to be touched. Deciding to tease her a moment, he blew on her with his lips, causing a hiss to escape through her teeth.

"Derek," she said hoarsely, "I know you think it's funny to play with me, but right now is not one of those times!"

Snickering, Derek looked up at her over her pregnant belly and grinned shamelessly. "Oh, my poor baby is feeling a little extra sensitive today, isn't she?"

With fire lighting up her eyes, she glared at him and hissed, "You really don't want to piss me off right now."

"Then let me try and cheer you up," he compromised, leaning forward and letting his tongue touch her spicy wetness. A sharp cry elicited from her mouth and he continued his work, sucking and swirling his tongue, devouring her. Her hips swiveled and he brought his arms up to hold her by the belly in an attempt to keep her still. The speed of her breath increased drastically and her moans echoed through the room.

"Oh God...Derek!" she screamed as she came to pieces beneath him, shuddering as she rode out her orgasm.

As he finished licking up the rest of her juices, he pulled back and grinned yet again. "That help any?"

Penelope rested her hands on her belly and arched an eyebrow at him. "Oh we're not done yet, Hot Stuff," she said huskily, leaning forward and pushing him so he landed on his back. Lifting one of her shaky legs, she straddled his hips and kissed him ever so gently. "We've still got round two." She raised herself up slightly and gripped his length, positioning him at her opening before settling herself down onto him, finding a way towards both their completions.

XXXXX

"Mmm, that was lovely," Penelope murmured against Derek's chest. They'd just finished their morning and afternoon of making love and were both utterly exhausted. Although she did feel much better. The extremely painful arousal she was feeling was gone, leaving behind only pure contentment. "We should do that more often."

Derek looked down at her with an amused expression on his face and said, "Baby Girl, we do that all the time."

Putting a pout on her face, she said, "But it was two weeks since the last time we did it." Biting her lip, she looked up at the ceiling as if thinking for a minute and added, "Oh, well, I suppose the last four hours did just make up for it, so never mind."

He laughed and kissed the top of her head. "Sorry we've been out of town so much," he murmured. "I wish I could be here with you. I worry about you and the little girl every day, whether I'm here with you or not. I just don't want those sons of bitches getting to you."

"How is Organized Crime coming along with finding them?" she asked softly. The BAU had been taken off the case of the Alexandrovitch family and the Organized Crime Division had been put on it due to time and manpower.

He sighed. "Reid and JJ have still been in contact with Brittany Stone and are working to get into the plan of what she's planning," he said. "Anderson been treating you okay? Is he keeping the -"

Penelope kissed him. "No one's been bugging me at all," she murmured. "We're okay." She put both hands on her belly and before she could say anything, another kick came from her belly and she looked up to grin at him. "She's kicking, Baby!" she said excitedly. She grasped his hands and put them both on her stomach. "Feel that?" There were tears in her eyes and she looked happier than she ever had in her life.

Derek felt the soft kicks of his daughter beneath his hands and grinned at his fiancee. "Yeah," he murmured, moving some of her hair out of her face so that he could see her glistening cocoa eyes. "I do feel that."

XXXXX

"Hey Reid," JJ said as they were getting into work the next day. "You heard anything for Organized Crime or Brittany recently?"

Reid looked up from his food that he was eating at lunch to find JJ looking at him intently. "We're supposed to hear from them today in the evening," he explained. He studied JJ momentarily and asked, "Are you alright, JJ? You seem a little tense."

JJ sighed and sat down next to him, rubbing her temples tiredly. "It's just - I just am really worried about Penelope," she admitted. "She's got only a little while until she has the baby and we still haven't caught Jackie or her crazy psycho father. The worst part about this is that we don't have any proof that they have anything to do with it."

"That's how it goes with the mob," Reid said tiredly. "They're smart enough not to get caught or leave any evidence."

Shaking her head, she murmured, "So we're hearing from Brittany tonight. Do you have any idea what she's going to be reporting to us?"

He shook his head again. "No idea," he said. "But the last time we talked to her it sounded like she and Jackie were getting back on even footing with each other. She's already mentioned Derek to her and the bad breakup due to Penelope, but she's not said anything about having her Daddy let her command his mob thugs. We just have some other things to discover. Like the specifics."

"I just don't want Penelope to have this stress," she murmured concerned. "And the amount they've been moving around is just unhealthy."

"JJ, I think you're right to worry, but don't freak out too much," he said. "Anderson has been doing great with the protective detail keeping them safe. We'll catch them and Morgan and Garcia can go back home. It's that simple."

"I sure hope you're right," she said after a long moment.

XXXXX

Reid's cellphone rang at nine o'clock at night while he and JJ were sitting in the round table room awaiting the call from Brittany. JJ had had her head resting on the table and it snapped up when the ring came blasting out in the room. They didn't hesitate in answering. "Hello, this is Dr. Spencer Reid," Reid said into the phone. Nodding once, he added, "Alright, Brittany. I'm going to put you on speakerphone. It's just me and Agent Jareau in the room." Pulling the phone away from his ear, he set it own on the table and hit the speaker button on his phone. "Go ahead."

Brittany's meek voice came across the line. "Agents, this isn't good. This really isn't good," she whispered frightfully. I've been doing what you told me and been getting reacquainted with my daughter. And I swear I was trying to talk sense into her and I've been begging her to forget about Anton, but she won't and now -"

"Brittany, you have to slow down," JJ said calmly, trying to sooth the other woman. "What's going on? Did something happen?"

"I don't know what happened...I don't know how she became so...so _evil!"_

"What happened?" Reid asked desperately, slightly afraid now.

"My daughter, she's planning on stealing that woman's baby!"

XXXXX

Jackie felt a flash of rage go through her as she heard her mother's words on the telephone. She had no idea which of the Agents she was talking to, but it didn't matter; her mother had been a rat. She was feeding information to the feds, most likely at the request of Penelope.

"What do you think you're doing?" she hissed, entering the room where her mother had gone to make a phone call.

Her mother spun around abruptly and her eyes were wide with shock. The phone dropped from her hand and she looked at Jackie with tears in her eyes. "Jackie," she said shakily. "Baby, please, hear me out. You don't have to do this. You can forget about this whole vendetta and live a happy life!"

"Do you not understand that having that baby would make me happy?" she hollered. "Derek and Penelope's suffering will make me happy!"

Brittany went to her daughter and took her hands. "Sweetie, let go of that anger and move on. Forget all of this crap that your father has taught you," she murmured.

Jackie yanked her arms away from Brittany's and hissed, "You have ruined everything!"

"What's all this yelling about?"

Anton had entered the room now and was looking between Brittany and Jackie. "Why are you two yelling?" His eyes found Brittany's and he saw the fear very clearly rise.

"Daddy, my mother was talking on the phone to the FBI," she whined. "She's been informing them of everything! She just told them about our plan to take the baby!"

Brittany turned to Anton. "Anton, please!" she whispered. "Listen to me. Just let this all go. Jackie is in a lot of trouble. If you stop attacking this woman and Derek and just disappear, you'll be fine. Let her stop this and move on with her life."

Anton smiled deviously. "Oh Brittany, you may have raised her, but I'm the one who truly influenced her life," he said. "You need to realize that. Don't think you can change her."

"Please!" Brittany begged. "Leave this woman's baby alone! Don't take her baby."

Jackie just laughed loudly. "Mom, you really made a mistake thinking that working with the feds," she said. "You never were a very good mother. It doesn't surprise me that you would give me up now." Shooting a look at Anton, she said coldly, "Daddy, we have to do something about this."

"I agree, my darling," Anton said, reaching into the inside of his suit. From it he produced a small revolver. He watched Brittany's eyes go wide and he pointed the gun at her. "You really shouldn't have done that Brittany."

"Wait! Please!"

The sound of the gun went off and the bullet struck Brittany in the temple. Her body fell to the ground with a thud and blood pooled around her head. Anton turned to look at Jackie and he said, "We've got to move ahead with our plan. We're not going to be able to wait for this baby."

"So, what are we going to do?" Jackie asked, biting her lip with worry. "I _need_ that baby, Daddy. We have to get that baby!"

Anton kissed Jackie's forehead. "Don't you fret, my dear," he said. "We're going to do two things first. We're going to have the boys come in and take care of your mother's body. Then, we're going to go get that baby."

"Daddy," Jackie huffed. "The baby isn't due for another month. And we don't know where they moved to."

"I have O'Malley working on surveillance at the BAU building," he assured her. "He'll follow them and find where they're living. To answer your second question, we're going to acquire both the girl and some pitocin."

Jackie stared at her father impatiently. "And then what? We hold her for a month until the baby comes?"

"No, no," he said. "We're going to kidnap Penelope Garcia and we're going to use the pitocin to induce her labor." Seeing the greedy look on his daughter's face, he added with a smile, "You will have that baby sooner than you think, my dear."

**Apologies on the length of this. Next one will be up soon.**


	18. Taken

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Sorry I released this one so late. I published "Losing Everything: Chapter 4" before it because there a request I update it very soon. So now, without further ado, here be Chapter 18 of this intensely angsty story. Thank you for your kind reviews and I hope this one keeps you on the edge of your seat :)**

"Oh, shit!" JJ gasped as they heard a faint gunshot on the other side of the line. Her eyes met Reid's. "Spence, did you hear that? They're planning on taking Garcia! We have to warn her!"

"That's not our only problem," he said worriedly. "If I was to make an educated guess, I'd say they just killed our source in cold blood."

Picking up her cell phone, JJ started dialing. "I'm calling them right now," she said.

"Don't tell them to go anywhere," he said. "They need to stay put. They may have turned off the phone before they finished the conversation, but my guess is they still have no idea where they are. We should just tell them to up the security detail. Otherwise, they should be fine as long as they're not out and about."

"We should call Hotch too," she said, rubbing her temples as she waited for either Morgan or Garcia to answer the phone. When someone finally picked up, she said frantically, "Derek! We have a problem..."

XXXXX

As soon as Derek put the phone down, his blood ran cold. Penelope was in the kitchen, making a very late dinner for the two of them. When he was confident he could see her and could keep her in his line of vision, he felt his body go rigid with fright. The Russian mob was planning to try and their baby straight from Penelope after she gave birth. A birth they were going to try and induce on their own. He'd never been more afraid in his life. His number one priority was keeping Penelope safe.

"Hot Stuff! Dinner's ready," Penelope called. She came bouncing into the living room and grinned brilliantly, like all was right in the world even though it was being threatened with crumbling down around them. When her eyes met his, her smile fell from her face. "Derek? What's wrong?" she asked worriedly. "Why do you look so off?" Her eyes went wide then. "Oh, God," she breathed. "Did something happen? Does it have to do with Jackie and Alexandrovitch?"

He nodded dumbly. "Yes," he said. "But not in a good way."

She went to sit down next to him and put her arms around him. "Derek, what's wrong?" she asked softly.

"Penelope, they're talking about taking the baby from you by inducing labor," he said hoarsely.

Penelope's face paled and she was silent for a long moment. "What do we do?" she asked in a barely audible voice.

"JJ wants us to stay put," he said. "They don't know where we are yet, but they think they'll try and find us. JJ and Reid are gathering the calvary right now and they'll be letting us know what else to do after they figure everything out." Putting both hands on her belly and placed a kiss on it. "We're going to be okay. And if they even try to get their hands on you, I'll break them off. Then I'll burn them alive."

Holding him around the waist, she kissed his neck and buried her face against him. "I hate sounding like this, but I'm scared," she whispered.

Kissing her head, he murmured, "It'll be okay. I've got you, Baby Girl."

XXXXX

Hotch showed up with the rest of the team at the temporary home of Morgan and Garcia. He knocked lightly and nodded to Agent Anderson who had been stationed outside the door to keep an eye on the hallway. "How are they doing?" he asked.

Anderson nodded. "They're doing fine right now," he said. "It's been awfully...well, there's been a little noise..." His face turned bright red and the rest of the team had to resist the urge to smirk. They knew exactly what kind of noise Derek and Penelope were making.

From the other side of the door, they heard the lock being turned and the chain being slid out of place. Penelope opened the door and smiled at them, but it lacked her usual sparkle. "Come on in guys," she said quietly. As the team entered the apartment, she turned her attention to Anderson. "Anderson, do you want anything to eat? Drink?"

"I'm good Penelope," he said with a smile. "I'm just keeping watch right now."

She smiled. "Let me know if you want anything," she said, shutting the door behind her and going into the living room with the rest of the team. "Thanks for coming guys," she said. "Derek is -" She looked down towards where their bedroom was and shook her head. "He's just -"

"Mulling in his thoughts?" Blake finished for her.

"Something like that," Penelope said tiredly, going down the hallway. "I'll be right back guys." She went into their room and up to Derek, who was staring out their window, a hard expression on his face. Putting a hand on his shoulder blade, she murmured, "Handsome, the team is here."

He turned to look at her and kissed her forehead. "I know," he said. "I heard them." He smiled. "Let's go."

The two headed out of the room and back into the living room. JJ and Blake moved over so the two of them could sit on the couch next to them. Derek looked up at Hotch. "What's the situation, Hotch?" he asked. "How much do we know right now?"

"At this point," Hotch began, "we know Brittany Stone has told us before she was yanked from the phone. According to her, Anton was talking to his boys saying that they were going to use the drug pitocin to induce labor."

Penelope's face was stark white and she was clutching Derek's hand until it dug trenches in it.

"We've decided to up the security detail," he continued. "If we had any idea where they were we would be there immediately, but we have no idea where they are. Anton Alexandrovitch has no record of place of living so there's no way to track him down. And seeing as we have only the names of _dead_ members of that particular family, we're screwed on that front as well." He was silent for a moment. "We're flying blind here. And I don't want you two to panic. You, Garcia, because you don't need any stress in this stage of your pregnancy. _You_, Morgan, because you'll blow a blood vessel or have a stroke, or something else of the sort."

Penelope looked down at the ground. She was scared to death. Someone was planning to take her baby by inducing her labor prematurely. Of all the sadistic things to do in the world, this was one that scared her more than anything else. "What happened to Brittany Stone? Is she okay?"

JJ shook her head sadly. "She was shot and we presume she was killed," she murmured softly.

A gasp escaped Penelope's mouth and she covered her mouth. She felt her heart dissolve in her chest. The woman who had been helping them was likely dead for trying to help her and Derek. Though she'd never met the woman, she felt more grateful to her than anyone could ever imagine. "Oh, God," she murmured, tears trickling down her cheeks. "This is terrible."

The room was covered in a tense silence. "We're going to need Morgan to come with us to the office," Blake said. "We've got to give the profile and seeing as he's the obsessional crimes expert we're going to need his input."

Derek snorted. "Pfft," he said. "There's no way in hell I'm leaving Penelope here by herself."

"Morgan, she wouldn't be here alone," Rossi reminded him. "Anderson and the rest of the group are here. They'll keep her safe. Right now we need you to help us give the profile so you can come back to Penelope and Jackie can be caught."

"Derek, go," Penelope said softly, turning to look at him. "They need you. I'll be fine." She gave him a radiant smile to let him know it would be fine.

Clenching his jaw uncomfortably, Derek nodded. "Alright. Let's go."

XXXXX

Jackie picked up her phone and rubbed her head tiredly. She rolled her eyes. It was O'Malley. She hated dealing with him more than any of the other men her father hired. He was drab and he constantly was quoting scripture and doctrine to them that she honestly didn't give a flying fuck about.

Her family was Russian Orthodox after all.

"What, O'Malley?" she said snippily into the phone.

"Ms. Alexandrovitch," he said. "Your father had me tailing Agent Hotchner as a stricter precaution in case following the other two didn't work out. Well, I followed him and I found where they're hiding Derek Morgan and Penelope Garcia."

Immediately forgetting her irritation with O'Malley, Jackie sat up straighter and barked, "Where are they?"

"In a small apartment down in the outskirts of DC," he reported. "I've sent the direct address to your father and he told me to call you and inform you. We should have her back where you are within the next hour or so."

Grinning wickedly, Jackie said, "Thank you, O'Malley. I'll be waiting." She paused before adding uncertainly, "You're sure you know how to deliver a baby properly."

A snicker came from the other end of the line. "Ms. Alexandrovitch, I did drop out of my final year of medical school. Delivering a baby should be no problem whatsoever."

"Excellent," she said sharply, hanging up the phone.

XXXXX

Anderson took a sip of his water bottle and continued to scroll through his phone as he read an article on _ESPN. _His job as part of a protective detail to both Morgan and Garcia was something he was taking very seriously, seeing as the last time he'd left a BAU agent unattended she'd gotten shot was so emotionally traumatized that she had to retire from the bureau completely. But no matter how dedicated he was to the job, he had to admit it was very uneventful.

As he was pressing the button to open another article, he heard a sound that sounded very much like a gunshot coming from the outside. Dropping his phone, he leapt to his feet and knocked swiftly on the door to Penelope's apartment. When she opened it her face was white with fear.

"What was that?" she asked shakily.

He shook his head. "I don't know," he said calmly. "It could just be something else entirely, but I'm going to go check it out and see if the others saw anything. I need you to stay in here. Don't open the door for anyone unless it's me, okay?" She nodded once before closing the door again. Anderson took off down the hall and was rounding the corner when the elevator dinged open and three men came bursting out, all three of them carrying guns.

_Shit, _he thought. They were there for Penelope and Derek.

Holding his gun out in front of him and pointing it at the men, he stepped out from behind the wall. "Stop right there," he said, struggling to keep his voice calm. "I'm a Federal Agent. What's your business here?"

"This is our business," one of them said, pointing his own gun at Anderson and shooting him in the chest before he could even comprehend what had happened.

As his body dropped to the floor, Anderson fought to stay conscious, but his vision was swimming and finally he dropped down in blackness.

XXXXX

When she heard the gunshot that happened just outside the hallway, Penelope felt tears jump to her eyes. Whoever the gunshots had come from were here for her. And after Anderson's voice had been cut off without any answer except a gunshot, she knew he'd been shot. Looking around frantically for her phone, she hastily started to dial Derek's number.

He picked up on the second ring and said softly, "Hey Baby, everything okay?"

With tears streaming down her face, she said, "No! Derek, they shot Anderson and the others outside the building! They found us!" She was about to say more when a much louder gunshot sounded and the lock from the door blasted backwards into the apartment. She jumped. "They shot the lock off the door!"

"Baby, I need you to stay calm and find somewhere to hide!" he bellowed into the receiver. "If you can get around them while they search, get out the door! And I need -"

"Put the gun down, love, or I'm afraid we'll have to shoot your baby."

Penelope's phone dropped from her fingers, despite the fact Derek was still yelling on his end of the line. Three of the men who had beaten both her and Derek on the night he had proposed were now standing in front of her, all of their guns pointed directly at her belly. She put her hands over it protectively and said, "Please...don't..."

The leader of the pack -whose name she had yet to learn still - came forward and pushed the tip of his gun against her belly, causing her eyes to well up with tears and a whimper to escape her throat. He just snickered. "You may want to come with us quietly, love," he said. "Because even though my employer wants this baby, they want you dead even more. So shooting you would just get the biggest desire out of the way first." He looked down at the phone on the ground before stomping his boot down on it, shattering it. Glaring at her, he turned to face his fellow mobsters and said, "We've got to get moving! She called her fucking boyfriend!"

"O'Malley's got the car ready downstairs," one of them said.

"Good." And before she could scream or say anything, he used the butt of his gun to knock her out cold.

XXXXX

Penelope's eyes started to flutter open and when they did she realized she was under an extremely bright light. She was lying back on a hard metal table. But instead of being in a hospital, she was in what looked to be a library which surgical materials had been added to. She gulped and tried to move, but her wrists and ankles were strapped down. Panic began to fill her heart.

"Oh, look who's awake!"

Her head snapped in the direction of the voice and she found Jackie herself coming into the room, followed by a few familiar faces from the night Derek proposed. She glared at her. "You crazy bitch! What the hell are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking I'm going to take that baby," she said, pointing to Penelope's stomach. "It would be better for you if you didn't struggle."

"You're nuts!" Penelope spat as Jackie came closer.

"No, I'm just a woman with a vendetta," she hissed, yanking on Penelope's hair so that her head tilted backwards uncomfortably. "A vendetta against the people who broke my heart. See, I've only got one of you here right now. You're just the homewrecker who stole my man. Just wait until I get my hands on him, the one who broke my heart. You'll both be dead."

"What are you going to do with my baby?" Penelope asked desperately. "This baby hasn't done anything wrong! Please don't hurt her!"

"Her?" Jackie squealed with delight. "I'm going to have a daughter?" Seeing the look of sheer devastation on Penelope's face, she grinned. "That's right, Penelope. I'm taking that baby. That baby should have been mine!"

Penelope shook her head wildly. "Please!" she cried. "Just - just kill me after this, but don't keep my baby!"

Jackie snickered. "You'll be dead, so why do you care?" she laughed. Letting go of Penelope's head, she went around to one of the thugs and held out her hand. He placed a syringe in it and she returned to Penelope's side.

"What is that?" Penelope asked, eyeing the cocktail.

"Just a little drug called pitocin," Jackie said, stabbing the syringe into Penelope's arm and pushing the tip down so the drug would fill her system. "Don't worry, Penelope. It will all...be over...soon..."

Just as Penelope was about to ask what the hell the drug was that got stabbed into her, a flood of wetness occurred between her legs and a contraction hit her like a rock to the head.

She'd just gone into labor.


	19. Down By The Docks

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Sorry the last one was so...evil :( This one won't be much better, but Penelope gets her shining moment. Thanks for the reviews...this one is wrapping up in a few chapters and I wanted to give you all an advance on my gratitude for the reviews, favorites, and follows! You are all lovely souls :)**

Derek and the rest of the team arrived at the apartment building twenty minutes after they'd received the phone call from Penelope. He was a bundle of rage and nerves. In all likelihood she would not be there. And that frightened him the most. Once they pulled up, sirens blaring and four cop cars screeching up behind them, Blake caught sight of the two agents who had been stationed outside and her face turned grim. "We've got two agents down," she said, hopping out of the SUV. "We need a bus immediately."

"I'm on it," JJ said, going to the cops frantically and ordering them to call an ambulance.

"We need to get inside now," Rossi said grimly. "If Thomas and Hynes are down, it's likely Anderson is too."

Derek, not saying anything, ran into the building immediately. He took the stairs two at a time until he reached the floor they lived on. Bursting through the doors, he ran down the hallway until he found Anderson's gasping body. He knelt down by him and put his finger to his pulse. "Anderson," he said. "You've got to stay with us!"

"I'm sorry, Morgan," he coughed, gasping for breath. "They took her."

Fear filled Derek's gut and he looked up at Hotch, Rossi, and Blake. "He needs an ambulance now," he said. Looking back at the injured agent, he begged, "Anderson, did you see any indication of where they might be? Where they might have taken Penelope?"

"Morgan, you need to give him some space," Blake said. "If he got shot he's not going to know where they took Penelope."

Anderson shook his head, still gasping for air. "No, no," he said. "I think I remember something. A smell. I smelled..." His voice trailed off momentarily and Derek desperately looked at him.

"What did you smell, Anderson? You have to tell me!" he begged, desperation filling his voice.

"Ocean," he gasped. "Sea water. Faint smell of fish too." Finally, he lay still, his eyes closing, but still breathing in shallow bursts.

Derek stood and rubbed his tear-filled eyes. Jackie and her father planned on taking his child straight from Penelope after she gave birth. A birth they were going to induce themselves. He couldn't stop his grief from hitting him full force. Rossi came over to him and put his hand on Derek's shoulder. "Listen Morgan," he said. "We're going to look for her. We have an idea of where they might be: by water. We've already called Lynch to have him start working on finding any connection between dead victims or the Alexandrovitch's. Maybe something in Jackie's name." He clapped him on the back. "We'll find her."

"Rossi, they're going to take my daughter and they plan to kill Penelope after they do it," he said frantically, feeling his breaths shorten. "We have only a few hours of labor to find them."

Rossi's face formed a grim line. "And we're going to find them and stop the crazy bitch from laying another finger on them."

XXXXX

_8 Hours Later_

"She's almost ready," the voice of the man who the rest of them called O'Malley said. "We'll be seeing this baby within the next half hour, maybe sooner."

Penelope could just barely make out his words. Her head felt dizzy and she could hardly make out anything in her vision. Already she'd thrown up a few times from a vicious nausea that was wracking her stomach. She was sweating profusely. "Please..." she tried to say. "Please...don't take her from me..." She felt tears pouring down her cheeks.

Jackie's voice broke out next. "Oh my God, just spare us the water works," she snapped. "You shouldn't care. You'll be dead soon."

"Just..." Her breath was coming in short gasps. "Just give her to Derek...you hate me...just let my baby go."

"Hmm, let me think about that," Jackie said sarcastically. "Uh, no."

"She's crowning," O'Malley said seriously. "Be ready with that towel."

"No!" Penelope screamed. More pain hit her and she let out another cry.

"You have to push," O'Malley said bluntly. "You don't push and your baby could be severely hurt." He glared at her and she could barely just make it out on his face before her vision blurred yet again.

Knowing the vicious thug was entirely correct, Penelope let out an ear-splitting shriek and pushed with all her might. She had no idea what type of life her baby was about to enter, but she knew being dead would give her no opportunity to grow up and escape. She continued to push with all her might and slowly but surely O'Malley started to tell her she was doing a decent job.

"Have those scissors ready," O'Malley ordered. "She's almost out of here."

Tears had begun to stream down Penelope's face. "No..." she murmured.

"Go ahead and cut the cord."

Everything was extremely blurry and her head was spinning, but one thing did break out: the cry of a baby. A smile spread across her face and she fought against her restraints to get a glimpse of her daughter. "Please...let me see her," she begged. "I just want to see her."

O'Malley - who Penelope got the impression was more likely to hear her pleas - had cleaned her daughter up and nodded. Apparently Jackie had left the room for something and wasn't there to object. He brought the crying baby towards Penelope and allowed her to see her daughter. The little girl had dark mahogany colored hair and skin a shade lighter than Derek's. But when she opened her eyelids, her eyes were exactly like Penelope's. The room went quiet and the baby stopped crying as she looked at her mother.

A small sob escaped Penelope's lips. She couldn't even reach out and hold her baby.

"My father wants to meet his granddaughter," Jackie's voice broke out. She came back into the room and held out her arms to take the baby. Throwing a look at Penelope, she added, "We'll deal with her later."

"No!" Penelope cried. "Don't!"

But she'd already taken the baby and stalked out of the room, the rest of them following behind her. Once Penelope was alone in the room, there was nothing she could do except sob. She continued fighting against her restraints, trying desperately to free herself. They were extremely tight, but as she wiggled her left wrist, the strap started to loosen some. Still crying, she continued to pull against the restraints until it broke and her arm came free. Hurriedly she worked on releasing the rest of the restraints from her ankles and other wrist.

Once completely free, she leapt from her place on her back. However, her head began to spin and her stomach churned when she landed on her feet. She stumbled around, falling against a bookshelf. Bile rose in her throat and she bent over, vomiting on the floor. The drug they'd given her more than likely was causing her to vomit and stumble. She took a few deep breaths in an attempt to calm her stomach. As she moved towards the door, she could hear Jackie's voice from outside the room.

"I'm going to go take care of our problem," she said sweetly. "I'll be back soon."

Penelope looked wildly around the room for something to use as a weapon. On the metal table where O'Malley had been keeping medical supplies, she found a scalpel and hastily she grabbed it. She had to find somewhere to hide.

She was taking the bitch down. Now.

XXXXX

"What have you found, Lynch?" Derek asked frantically, bursting into the office Lynch was stationed in. "Please tell me you're got something."

"I'm looking and I've only found one thing that would be of any use to anyone," he said. "There's a whole section of the docks owned by a Jason O'Malley."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Derek snapped. "O'Malley is an Irish name, not Russian."

Lynch shot him a look. "Yes, Agent Morgan," he said coolly. "I'm well aware of this. This is significant because O'Malley is the name of one of the known members of the Alexandrovitch family. Now, Jason is deceased but he does have a relative who is named David. And David inherited everything from his father after he died. So -"

"So David has an address on him," Derek finished.

"The O'Malley family is relatively wealthy too," Lynch added. "Their home is extremely close to the docks, so the smell of sea water Anderson described to you is highly possible."

"Keeping her somewhere other than Alexandrovitch's house is smarter too," Reid said, entering the room. "No one would suspect someone like O'Malley to have connections to the mob aside from his family member. This David looks completely normal: no arrests, divorced once, medical school dropout -"

Derek's face shot up. "Medical school dropout?" he barked. His eyes met Reid's. "Reid, if they dropped out of medical school, would they still be able to deliver a baby?"

Reid nodded. "Depending on what year they dropped out, yes," he said. His eyes went wide. "We need to get there. Now!"

"Lynch, send us that address!" Derek ordered, rushing out of the office.

XXXXX

Penelope hid behind the closest bookcase and waited until she heard the door unlock. Her head had started to slow down and her vision was somewhat clearer. In her hand she clutched the scalpel and was ready to strike out at any moment.

"Really?" Jackie screeched. "_Penelope_?"

The door closed and Penelope heard Jackie's heels clicking on the floor. She kept her back pressed up against the bookshelf and made her breathing as steady and quiet as she could.

"Honestly, you think you can hide in this room for very long?" she hissed. "As soon as I find you, you're going to end up dead. You'll never see that baby. And you won't see Derek either. Your life is _over_."

Holding the scalpel in her hand tightly, Penelope waited until Jackie had passed by the bookcase. With her back to her, she poised the sharp end of the scalpel and launched herself at Jackie's back, latching on around her neck and holding the blade against her throat. A yelp escaped Jackie's mouth and Penelope squeezed hard.

"What was that you were just saying?" she hissed through clenched teeth. She was going to say more when Jackie elbowed her roughly in the gut, sending her flying backwards. The scalpel clattered to the ground out of her reach and underneath a bookcase.

Jackie rubbed her throat where Penelope had grabbed her and turned to face her. There was venom in her gaze as she stalked forward. "You know something?" she said hoarsely as Penelope tried to stand up. "I'm a smart girl. But for the life of me I can't figure out why I didn't see you as a threat. Derek always seemed like he wanted to rip your throat out." She laughed bitterly. "I guess I should've known better. It wasn't your throat he wanted to rip off...just your panties."

"Goes to show how little you know Derek, I guess," Penelope said, rising to her feet unsteadily. She fell backwards against another bookcase from dizziness. "Where is my baby?" she spat.

Letting out a vicious giggle, Jackie said, "Did you not not hear me? You will _never _see that baby!"

"Oh, I've heard you the last few times you've screeched it," Penelope said, steadying herself. Focusing her glare more directly on Jackie, she started to walk towards her. "I'm not going to ask you again, Jackie. Where did you take my daughter?"

Jackie smirked. "I'm not going to answer you," she said.

Penelope couldn't take it anymore and she launched herself at the other woman, pushing her backwards. The two women landed against the nearest shelf and Penelope tried to wrap her hands around the other woman's neck. Instead all she was able to do was rake her nails across Jackie's face. The other woman let out a screech and kicked out, landing a kick to Penelope's stomach. She let out a cry of pain and fell backwards, almost blacking out from the agony it put her in. Landing on her side, she barely had time to look up when Jackie fell down on top of her again, scratching her across the throat. Penelope grabbed Jackie's hair and yanked her head back as best she could.

"Stupid bitch!" Penelope screeched, forcing Jackie off of her. She pushed Jackie away so that her head slammed against the table and pulled herself up, sliding backwards on the ground. She had to find a weapon or something to hurt her with. Jackie was rubbing her head and groaning in pain. Penelope figured she had a matter of seconds to figure something out. Looking around wildly, her eyes landed on a lamp resting on the desk. It was directly above her head.

Fighting against the pain in her abdomen, Penelope gritted her teeth and made an attempt to rise up and snatch it. Her fingers gripped the heavy butt of the lamp and it fell to the ground next to her. Picking it up, she started to get to her feet and went to stand above Jackie, who was still rubbing her sore head. "I will ask you one more time," she hissed through her clenched teeth. "Where is my child?"

Jackie laughed again. "If I'm going to die, then one consolation I get is you never seeing your daughter," she said with a cackle. "My father has already taken her somewhere else. You -" Her voice was cut off by Penelope dropping the heavy lamp none too gently on her chest.

Painfully, Penelope tried making her way to the door. She was having difficulty walking and had to lean against the wall. Turning the door knob, she made her way into the dimly lit hallway, holding the wall the entire time. Her breathing was coming in short gasps and her mind was racing. She had to find her daughter. It was the only thing on her mind. As she reached the end of the hall, the door burst open from the outside to reveal Rossi and Blake, followed by a team of SWAT agents. Holding up her hands, she couldn't stop her body from shaking uncontrollably.

"Guys, it's me!" she cried as she stared at the ends of their guns.

Rossi and Blake both holstered their guns and went to her side. "Penelope!" Rossi gasped, steadying her in his arms. "What on earth -"

She cut him off. "Jackie's down that way," she said hoarsely. Gripping Rossi's arm so tight it was sure to leave bruises, she added, "Rossi, Alexandrovitch has my daughter! We have to stop them from getting away!"

Blake put her hand on her shoulder and offered to take her from Rossi. He nodded and passed her off so that Blake was leading her out of the house and into the street where there were several cop cars and SUVs stationed around. "We have to get my daughter, Blake!" she gasped, trying hard to go back in the house. Her eyes were wild with emotion and she continued to struggle against the grip of her teammate.

"Penelope, you need to get in an ambulance right now," Blake told her calmly. "You shouldn't be up and about at all, much less talking and trying to conduct a search."

"Anton Alexandrovitch has my baby!" she wept. "I have to get my baby back!"

"Derek is looking for her," she said. "Alexandrovitch hasn't had a chance to go anywhere. He's somewhere on the premises still."

As Blake led Penelope to a waiting ambulance, she continued to babble and try to break free, but eventually she fainted from the exhaustion.

**So this is only part one of Jackie's destruction. There's more coming for her. In the next one we will also have Derek rescuing the unnamed baby girl. Please review!**


	20. A Fighter

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Updated this as quick as I could! I know you all are anxious to see Derek find our unnamed baby, so here it is. Thank you so much for the reviews and support and I hope you are okay with this chapter :)**

A voice came through the walkie talkie for Derek. "Morgan, we have Penelope in an ambulance, passed out from shock and she's got some blood loss," Rossi's voice crackled through the connection. "We also have Jackie in custody. But Alexandrovitch has the baby. He's still on the premises. You're going to have to find him. We've got SWAT covering the building. He won't be going anywhere. All you have to do is find him."

"Copy that," Derek said anxiously. He held up his gun, poising it to fire if he found any thugs. The SWAT agents and Reid were following him and ready to fire at any moment. However, the moment he heard the cry of a baby, he held up his hand to stop the men behind him. His gut clenched and his heart stopped. His daughter. He'd just heard the sound of his daughter. "Follow the sound of the baby," he hissed. "And stay quiet." Then he advanced forward, doing as he'd ordered the men with him.

When they stopped in front of the door in which the baby's cries could be heard, Derek slowly turned the knob of the door and advanced forward. In the room he found no one aside from Alexandrovitch. And in his arms was Derek and Penelope's daughter, crying and shrieking. And Alexandrovitch was just staring at the child, an almost serene smile on his face.

"You know, Derek," he said, "you and the Garcia girl made a gorgeous little girl here. She's going to look just like her mother."

"Give us the girl, Alexandrovitch," Reid said calmly, stepping into the room and standing next to Derek, gun still raised.

The SWAT agents started to come in, but Alexandrovitch tutted. "No," he said. "Just Derek and the good doctor. I want to be with smart ones. They're the only ones who have anything stimulating to say to me. They're the only ones with a personal stake in the matter."

At first the SWAT team didn't move, but Derek signaled for them to go. "Alright," he said, gun still trained at Alexandrovitch's head. "It's just us. The intellectually stimulating ones." His voice turned dangerous. "Now...give me my daughter."

"Have you picked out a name for her yet?" he asked. "Jackie, before she got caught was going to name her Maddison." He chuckled like they were having small talk. "Rather dull if you ask me. See, I would've given her a name that was Russian. Natasha seems fitting, don't you think?"

"I think seeing as she's not your daughter you have no say in her name," Derek snapped.

Alexandrovitch sighed. "Well, I suppose you're right," he said. "You've got snippers trained on me at every angle of the windows, so there's no way I'll get out of this." He rose from his seat and cradled the baby in his arms. He began to walk towards Derek and Reid. "But let me tell you this: something will happen to you. You broke my daughter's heart."

Derek's eyes went wide. "Please," he begged. "Don't harm my daughter. She's just a baby."

Holding at his daughter for Reid to take her. Then, without a single warning he would do anything, he jammed a large blade into Derek's side, getting him in his side where his vest couldn't protect him. Grimacing as his side burst into fiery pain, but raised his gun and fired into Alexandrovitch's chest. The mob boss fell backwards onto the ground, a ghostly smile covering his face.

He was dead.

Breathing heavily, Derek's gun dropped to the ground and he stumbled backwards into the wall, clutching his bleeding side. But he forced himself to ignore the pain and go to look at his daughter. A loving glow lit up his eyes and he stroked the index finger that wasn't covered in blood down her small cheek. "She's beautiful," he murmured.

"Morgan, we have to get you to the hospital," Reid said frantically. "You're losing blood and soon you'll go into shock."

"Do I get to hold my daughter at the hospital once they fix me up?" he asked.

Reid nodded. "Yes, for sure."

XXXXX

"What are their statuses?" Hotch asked the attending ER physician when the team rushed into the hospital.

"You're here for Penelope Garcia and Derek Morgan and their unnamed daughter?" he asked. They all nodded and he held out his hand to shake Hotch's. "My name is Paul Swanson, I'm the doctor working on them. Please come with me."

Leading them towards an empty exam room, he said grimly, "Well, we were able to patch up Mr. Morgan relatively easily. The stab wound was deep, but it didn't hit anything major on the way out. He'll heal nicely. Their daughter was taken prematurely from her and generally those kinds of births are extremely harmful. However, this one was - as morbid as it sounds - was well performed and aside from the prematurity, she'll be okay as well.

"It's Ms. Garcia we're most concerned about," she said. "She started bleeding somewhat heavily when she arrived here and she had major nausea and chills, likely from a dose of too much pitocin. It wasn't enough to be an overdose, but it was too much nonetheless. And she definitely should not have been moving around after such a traumatic event on her body. She'll need to be kept several days for observation."

JJ raised a finger to speak. "Will she be allowed to hold her baby at all if she's strong enough?" she asked. "The bastards who did this to her didn't let her hold her before they snatched her away."

The doctor nodded. "I see no reason why that would be a problem," he said. "I'll let you know when she's awake and ready for visitors. Mr. Morgan is already awake and was given permission to hold their daughter. He's in the room just down the hallway."

"Thank you," Blake said as they all headed in the direction of Derek's room. When they reached it, they looked into the room before knocking. A nurse was working on putting on a new IV as Derek was looking down at his daughter, a look of complete adoration on his face. Reid knocked softly on the door, causing him to look up and he waved them over.

"Hey you guys," he said. "How are you doing?"

Rossi snorted. "How are _we_ doing? The better question is how are you doing?"

Derek sighed and looked back down at his sleeping daughter. "I'm half fine" he admitted. "I'm worried about Penelope. Has the doctor said anything about her condition?"

Hotch nodded. "She's stable for now," he said. "She'll have to be kept for a few days, but they think she'll be okay."

"Alright," Derek said slowly. "We'll just have to stay posted on how she's doing." He got very quiet after that.

Trying to turn the conversation in a happier direction, Rossi asked, "You two think of any names for the little girl?"

Derek smiled softly and touched a lock of the baby girl's curly hair, which she had a plethora of on her small head. He shook his head. "No," he said. "But after all this, I like the idea of Ellie. It's supposed to mean 'light.' Light seems fitting, seeing as her birth was so...dark. And I know Ellie is a shortening of Helen or Ellen or something, but this works better because it's more - it just fits better." He paused. "But I'm waiting for Penelope to decide. We're doing this together."

The team smiled. "Well, for now she's Baby Morgan," JJ said with tears floating in her eyes.

XXXXX

Penelope's eyes fluttered opened and she squinted, her vision blurry. She looked around for her glasses and found them on a tray next to the hospital bed she was. Fighting past the physical pain she was feeling, she reached for the glasses and slid them on her face, allowing her to see. She was alone in a hospital room that was stark white and the sun was streaming through blinds on the window. For a moment her brain was blank and she realized her daughter was nowhere to be found. Panic filled her chest. Throwing the scratchy hospital blankets off of her legs, she grasped her IV pole and stumbled around, moving towards the door.

She pushed the sliding door halfway open before she was stopped by a nurse.

"Oh my God!" she gasped. "Ms. Garcia! You have to be back in bed immediately. You can't be up and about for at least days. We have to get you back now, before your doctor sees you."

Penelope shook her head vigorously. "No!" she gasped. "My baby! While I was being held, they induced my labor and took my daughter! I don't even know if they got her back! Did they get my baby?"

"Ms. Garcia, it's alright," the nurse soothed. "Your daughter is safe and healthy with your fiance. You can rest easy. We'll see if they can come and visit you. In the meantime, sit tight. Are you in pain?"

Looking at the nurse skeptically, Penelope realized it would be pointless to try and escape again. She nodded and settled back into the bed. "Yes, I'm hurting. Is there something you could give me for that?"

"Of course," she said. "You had a pretty bad trauma happen to you. It's understandable you would want some."

"Will I be okay?" she asked.

The nurse nodded. "You fought hard," she said. "It was rough on your body, but what you did was incredibly brave. You're a fighter. I admire that. And I suspect your fiance and daughter do too." She gave her a small wink.

Penelope blushed. "I hope so," she murmured.


	21. She's Our Light

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**So the last one was pretty happy compared to the other ones. This one will be even happier :) Thanks for the reviews and I hope you enjoy this one!**

"Mr. Morgan, you can take your daughter to see your fiancee now if you would like," Dr. Swanson said as he was checking off Derek's charts. "She woke up a little while ago and we were just running some tests to see if everything was sound."

Derek sat up straighter. It had been two days since they'd been taken into the hospital and the entire time Penelope had been unconscious. He himself felt fine after a few days of recuperating. He'd also spent the last two days taking care of his daughter - who still didn't have a name yet - and waiting for news about Penelope's condition. Now that she was awake, he could go see her.

"So, could you get a wheelchair for me?" he asked. "If I could, I'd like to see her now. Please."

"Let me get a nurse and you can head on over right now," he said. "She was asking for you and the baby. As soon as she woke up she was trying to get out of the room. Then he was out of the room and returned with a nurse and a wheelchair. Rising from his bed with the doctor's assistance, Derek went to sit in the wheelchair. The nurse went to the small crib that his daughter was sleeping in a mere few feet from him. She placed her gently in his arms and Derek smiled widely almost instantly.

"Hey little girl!" he cooed. "Are you ready to go see your Mommy? 'Cause I know she's ready to see you." As the nurse wheeled him down the hall, they ran into Hotch and Reid. "Hey guys!" he said. "We were just going to see Penelope. You coming?"

Reid grinned. "We would never miss the opportunity to see our favorite technical analyst," he said.

"Good," Derek said with a grin. They headed towards the elevator and all boarded it to head downstairs. The entire time Derek rambled on to his daughter about how much she was going to love her mother Even Hotch smiled about it. When the elevator dinged on the level they were getting out at, the nurse started wheeling him down a corridor and stopped outside a room before wheeling him in. Penelope was laying her hospital bed with her eyes closed and her head leaning back.

"Hey Baby Girl," Derek called. "You've got some visitors."

Immediately Penelope's eyes snapped open and she adjusted her glasses so that she could see clearly. When she saw that it was Derek and their daughter, a bright grin covered her face. Tears floated on the surface of her eyes and she murmured, "Derek, I'm so glad to see you! What happened? Did Alexandrovitch hurt you or the baby?" She kept on rambling until Derek put a hand on her knee.

"Motor Mouth," he laughed, "calm down. He stabbed me a little, but it's fine." He held up their daughter and added, "Hold your daughter, Baby Girl."

The moment Derek placed their baby in Penelope's arms happy tears started to roll down her cheeks. She cradled their daughter in her arms as if she were life itself and stroked her index finger down her cheek. "She's so beautiful," Penelope whispered. Glancing up at Derek, she murmured, "Derek, she's perfect."

Derek leaned up and put his elbows on the bed, staring dreamily at both his girls. "Just like her mother," he said lovingly. "You know, she's got your eyes?"

Penelope nodded and looked back down at her. "I did happen to see that," she whispered. "Did you name her yet?" She shook her head. "I can't believe I didn't ask that first."

He shook his head. "No," he said. "I didn't want to do it without you. But I did have a couple of ideas."

"What did you come up with?" she asked.

Blushing, he said, "Well, I did a little research while you were out and she was sleeping and I found one that I thought might work." He paused a moment. "Ellie. It is a shortening of something like 'Ellen' or 'Helen' or something like that, but they've got the same meaning. It means 'light'."

Penelope was quiet for a moment, but then she looked up and smiled widely at Derek. "It's perfect. She is light."

"She's _our_ light," Derek added.

XXXXX

Hotch and Reid retreated out of the room while Penelope and Derek bonded with the now-named baby, Ellie. The two of them were in their own little world and neither Hotch or Reid wanted to interrupt the tender moment.

"They look so happy," Reid sighed happily, leaning against the wall outside Penelope's hospital room. They were waiting outside for Rossi, Blake, and JJ and Will to come as they were eager to meet Ellie for real. They also wanted to see Penelope and Derek in a non-panicking setting. "I'm very much looking forward to this wedding. It's going to be beautiful."

Hotch cocked an eyebrow at Reid. "You know, I never took you for such a romantic, Reid," he said. "Rossi told me about the 'spirit of love' you mentioned while you were bush whacking to find the ring Derek had tossed into the bushes. You never cease to amaze me."

Reid smiled smugly. "Well, you know," he said. "I have to have something to pull out when I see a cute girl. I just so happened to use it in the context of Morgan and Garcia."

"Well, it was very fitting," Hotch commented.

"Hey guys!"

Reid and Hotch turned around to see the rest of the team and Will coming towards them. "We went to Derek's room," JJ said, "but they told us that he'd been allowed to Penelope's room and that Penelope had woken up." Her face was covered in a large smile.

Smiles were covering the faces of all the BAU team that day.

"They named her," Reid said. "Ellie. It means 'light'."

"That's so wonderful," Blake said, looking in the room at Penelope and Derek holding Ellie and cooing to her. "They look so happy."

Rossi nodded. "Hey, quick question," he said, looking at Hotch specifically.

"Hmm?"

"What happened to that bitch Jackie?" Rossi asked. "She doesn't seem the type to go incredibly quiet."

JJ smiled wickedly and satisfactorily. "Oh, that poison is locked up nice and tight at the local precinct. She lawyered up pretty quickly, but there's enough evidence to keep her in prison until that miserable life of hers is over. As for the other thugs, they're getting locked up too. There's no chance they won't."

Blake shook her head. "How could one woman get so messed up so would take another woman's baby by stealing her out of another woman's womb?" she said, shaking her head.

"Her profile was easy on the outside, but my guess is there is way more to Jackie Stone than we will understand right now," Rossi said. "But we should't talk about that bitch right now. We should just focus on the happiness of the occasion. After all, the birth of a Morgan-Garcia baby was something that was a long time coming."

"Nine years is a long time to dance around a person," Hotch said. "Way, _way_ too long."

XXXXX

"Garcie, she's so beautiful!" JJ cooed, looking down at her goddaughter. "She's so healthy looking too for being a month early."

"I'm just glad Jackie and her father didn't have the opportunity to hurt her," Penelope said in a relieved tone. It had been three days since she'd woken up and the doctor had deemed it safe for Penelope to breast feed Ellie. Currently the baby was suckling away.

JJ sighed. "You're so going to be a good mommy," she said.

"I learned some tricks from you," Penelope said, winking at her friend. She looked around. "Say...where did Henry go off to?"

JJ jerked her thumb in the direction of the door. "He went to grab a snack from the vending machine," she said. "He'll be back soon."

A knock sounded from the door and Derek came in with a smile on his face and a drink carrier of coffee. Penelope gave a moan of approval. "Oh my God, Hot Stuff!" she cooed. "You brought me coffee! You are the most wonderful man in the world!" She grinned brightly.

Derek distributed the coffees to JJ and Penelope before sitting down next to Penelope's bed. "I know," he said. "I'm sent from heaven." He glanced at Ellie. "How's the Princess doing?"

"Oh, Lordy," Penelope said, shifting Ellie in her arms slightly. "Hungry, hungry, hungry."

Derek smiled. "You're doing just fine with her," he said.

"Hey, so how long until I can get out of here?" she asked Derek desperately. "I just want to go home. Our real home. I hate those stupid apartments we've been staying in."

Derek took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "I'll talk to the doctor," he said. As he was about to get up, Ellie unlatched her mouth from Penelope's breast and let out a small yawn. And then she raised her little hands in the air and smiled at her mother, her little tongue poking out of her mouth.

Penelope's eyes went wide. "Derek!" she exclaimed. "Derek, she just smiled at me! I know babies _can_ smile very soon after being born, but I didn't think it would happen for us!" Her eyes were watery and they met Derek's gaze.

It was a moment of happiness that neither Derek or Penelope would ever forget.


	22. Daddy's Girl

**Disclaimer: I own not- you know what? This should be more snazzy. None of this is mine. It's sad, but true. ...dammit!**

**So here's another chapter. Not a ton more left chapter wise in this story...sadly it is coming to an end :( From then on I'll work on "Losing Everything" and "The Violator" and in the works is another crossover (I'm obsessed with them!) that I shall not reveal the other universe Criminal Minds shall be paired with. However, in addition to Morgan/Garcia there will be JJ/Rossi :) That is all.**

**Thank you again, lovely people for your reviews! You're all very kind and I am grateful you read my stories :) So without further ado, here be Chapter 22.**

"She's so perfect," Derek murmured, looking at his daughter with undeniable love on his face. He was sitting in a chair right next to Penelope's bed and she smiled at him as he held Ellie in his arms. He looked up and noticed her staring at him and smirked. "What? Is there something on my nose?"

She shook her head. "No," she said with a hint of a laugh in her voice. "I'm just looking at how great you are with her. You're the most loving father I've ever seen. And Ellie is going to be the most spoiled Daddy's Girl in the whole world."

Chuckling, he said, "Oh, well you know me. Gotta give my Baby Girls what they want."

Penelope blushed. "So does that mean you'll give me _anything_ I want?" she asked innocently. "Say, in six weeks, when my ban on...fornicating is lifted?"

Sputtering with laughter, he rose to his feet and dropped a kiss on her cheek. "As soon as that ban is lifted I'll take you on every damn surface in our house."

She giggled. "Hot Stuff, I'm looking forward to this already," she purred. "Shame it's such a long ways away." As Derek sat back down, she added, "And you know? I'm so glad we get to go home. I hated every last one of those apartments. We've got to tell the FBI to find better hide outs."

Derek smirked and leaned down to kiss Ellie's forehead. "Your Mama likes to complain about the interior decoration of homes," he said in a cooing voice. Ellie's response was sticking her tongue out of her mouth and gurgling. "Oh, you are just the cutest little girl in the whole wide world, aren't you? I've never loved anyone more than I love you and your Mommy. You are so precious." Penelope started to crack up uncontrollably. He cocked an eyebrow at her and snickered, "_Now_ what?"

"I remember when I first met you," she said, "and I never thought I'd see you holding a baby." Tapping her finger against her chin, she added, "Don't you remember when Haley brought Jack in to the BAU and I asked you if you wanted one of them? And you said, ever so charmingly, 'I'll stick to practicing.'"

He laughed. "I'm going to be honest, I never wanted kids until I met you," he admitted. "And you're the only one I want kids with. I want to have a whole clan of mini you's and me's."

"Oh yeah? How many?" she teased.

"I was thinking six," he said with a wicked grin.

Her eyes went wide and she shook her head. "Oh, ho ho!" she laughed. "No freakin' way am I pushing _five_ more babies out of me! How about we shoot for three more?"

He kissed Ellie's forehead again and looked back up at Penelope. "I suppose that would be sufficient." Ellie began fussing in his arms and he stood up to hand her to Penelope. "I think this little girly wants her Mommy," he said, gently placing his daughter in her mother's arms. Once she took Ellie in her arms, he kissed the top of her head and murmured, "While you feed her, I'll go talk to the doctors. I'll see when we can get you home."

Touching his cheek before he left, she smiled. "Hurry back, you handsome ball of chocolate," she purred, giving him a wink.

Shaking his head and laughing, Derek walked out of the room and towards the nurse's station where he found Dr. Swanson filling out a chart. He approached the counter and waited until the doctor was finished speaking to the nurses. He looked up at Derek and nodded. "Hi there, Mr. Morgan," he said. "Is there anything I can help you with? I was going to come check on Ms. Garcia as soon as I started my rounds. Is everything okay?"

Derek nodded. "Everything is perfect," he said with a smile. "I was just wondering if you could give us a time frame on when Penelope can be released from the hospital. We want to get our house ready for Ellie because before she was born we were moving around a lot and never had a chance to set up her nursery."

"Give me one moment," Dr. Swanson said, going back behind the counter towards the shelf of charts. He dug around until he found the one he was looking for. "Here's your fiancee's chart." Going back towards him, he said, "Okay, well, according to Ms. Garcia's charts, her vitals are strong and she's been telling us she's not in any pain. I'd be willing to let her go within the next day or so depending on whether or not she remains on this path. If she does, she's good to go." Smiling, he added, "I'll be there to check on her when I get to her room on my rounds."

"Thanks, Doc," Derek said, hurrying back towards Penelope's room. When he got back, he found that his daughter had fallen asleep in her mother's arms and Penelope was stroking her cheek. "I'm back, Baby Girl," he said softly.

She looked up at him and smiled. "Well that wasn't super long," she said. "I'm assuming that means I can go home soon?"

He sat on the edge of her bed and nodded, leaning in and kissing her softly on the lips. "Yes," he said. "He said as long as you stay the same way you are right now that you can go home within the next day or so. We'll be home by the weekend."

With a soft squeal of delight, Penelope captured Derek's lips in hers and kissed him. "I'm so excited!" she whispered, so as not to wake up their sleeping daughter. "We're going home, Baby Boy."

He grinned and cupped her cheek in his large hand. "Yes, we are," he replied, leaning his forehead against hers.

XXXXX

"How's the nursery painting coming?" Hotch asked, poking his head into the room that was Ellie Morgan's room. The team had enlisted Beth, Will, Jack, and Henry to help get the nursery ready for Penelope and Derek since they were still waiting for Penelope to be released.

JJ turned around from facing the wall and gave Hotch the thumbs up sign. She was wearing an old t-shirt and hole-covered jeans that were splattered with lavender paint. She grinned. "Excellent," she said. "She looked over at Alex and Reid who were painting the other walls in the room. "Right guys?"

Blake didn't turn around, but she said, "Yep. It's going good. I'm getting ready to put the stencils on the wall that's already done."

"Cool," he said. "We have all of Garcia's stuff in the moving truck and it's all on the way over. The landlord agreed to let us buy out the lease, so that's done as well."

"Did Garcia say where she wanted her stuff?" Reid asked, shaking his head so that his hair would move out of his face, seeing as his hands were covered in purple paint.

JJ shook her head. "Nope, but I have an idea of where to put some of it," she said. "It's going to look great when we're done." She looked at her watch. "Hey, it's almost noon. I'm gonna call and order some pizza. What do you guys want? I know the little boys will want pepperoni."

"Get something with garlic on it," Reid said, raising his paint brush in the air. He didn't anticipate that a large drop of paint would drip down onto his head and into his hair.

"Florentine's has a garlic alfredo pizza that is exquisite."

Blake nodded in agreement. "That's two of us who will want the garlic," she said.

"I know Will will want that too," JJ said, exiting the room to go wash her hands and order the pizza. "I'll call and make the order

Once the pizza had arrived and the rest of the team arrived back from Penelope's old apartment, they sat in Morgan's kitchen and ate lunch. "I can't wait until Auntie Penelope and Uncle Derek come home to see what we did with their house!" Henry exclaimed, picking up another piece of pizza and taking a bite of it. After he swallowed, he grinned, tomato sauce around the corners of his mouth. "Mom, when are they coming home?"

JJ picked up a napkin and wiped the corners of Henry's mouth. "They should be home in a couple of days, sweetie," she said. "Uncle Derek called to say the doctor said she can come home on Friday."

"And we get to see Ellie?" Jack asked hopefully. "She's very cute. Do you think she'll like her room?"

Beth smiled. "Yeah," she said. "I think she will love her room."

"I hope she does," he repeated again. "Because Henry and I painted some of the room. Daddy said it would be okay if we did, so we picked up brushes and helped Uncle Reid. He said we did a 'splendid' job on it. That we were regular 'Picassos.'"

Hotch smirked. "I think Ellie will love," he said with a smile. "And I'm positive Penelope and Derek will too."

**This one was a little shorter, but fluffy. Next one will be in the works, most likely tomorrow! Please review if you have time :)**


	23. Welcome Home

**Disclaimer: None of this is mine. If it were, Morgan and Garcia would be together. That is all.**

**Here's another happy happy joy joy chapter :) Thank you for the kind reviews and I hope you guys like this one. It's very light hearted. But then again, the rest of the story is pretty light-hearted. Happy stuff! This is the last one before the epilogue :*( I'm sad!**

_Six Weeks Later_

Penelope was sitting in the rocking chair inside Ellie's nursery, nursing her baby daughter late in the evening. She had been home for six weeks and she'd never been happier. Jackie was locked up and Anton Alexandrovitch was dead. Her home was built back up and she and Derek were stronger than ever. She looked around at her daughter's room and smiled serenely.

"_Why are you acting so weird?" Penelope asked with a smirk as she and Derek made their way up the steps of the porch to their house. She was carrying Ellie's carrier while Derek was holding the baby. "You've been smirking the entire way home."_

_He raised an eyebrow at her and grinned. "I'm not acting weird," he laughed. "You're just paranoid." Leaning down closer to her face, he planted a soft kiss on her lips. "Welcome home, Baby Girl," he murmured as she opened the door._

"_Oh, thanks Hands -" she started to say._

"_Welcome home!"_

_Her mouth dropped open when she saw the whole team, along with Will, Beth, Jack, and Henry all standing in the living room, all of them smiling widely. "Hi guys!" she cried, putting Ellie's carrier down on the couch. She went to hug all of them. "What are you doing here? We hadn't even told anyone we were going to have you all over as soon as we got everything situated."_

"_Well," Derek started to say, "they have a surprise for us." He kissed Ellie's head and handed her into Penelope's open arms. "They've also got something for the Princess too."_

_Hotch nodded and let one of his rare smiles show. "Yeah," he said. Looking at JJ, he said, "JJ, do you want to take them upstairs?"_

_JJ nodded vigorously and motioned for them to follow her up the stairs. "Come on guys," she said. "Blake, Reid, and I had a little help from Jack and Henry to put this together. They were very excited when we asked them to help us put this together."_

_Penelope and Derek's eyes met and they smiled. "Lead the way, Jayje," Penelope said, following her best friend up the stairs. They ended up in the room across the hall from their bedroom and she gasped when they entered room. "Oh my God!" she murmured, looking around the room. "It's beautiful!"_

_The room had been painted lavender and there were pink stenciled butterflies and dragonflies on the walls. The crib was dark mahogany wood and there were pink sheets on the bed and above it there was a swinging mobile of smiling stars. In the corner of the room by the window was a rocking chair and on the wall opposite it was a changing table. Above the table on the wall were colorful block letters that formed Ellie's name. In addition to the stenciled on butterflies, the walls also held empty photo frames that Penelope assumed she could put photos of the family in._

_Looking at JJ with tears in her eyes, she whispered, "Thank you." She looked at Ellie in her arms and kissed her forehead. Ellie poked her tongue out and stared at her mother, wondering why she was smiling so much. "Oh, Ellie baby," she cooed. "This is your room! It's so pretty, just like you!"_

_Derek wrapped his arms around her from behind and put his chin in the crook of her neck. "Welcome home, girls," he murmured._

Ellie's eyes started to flutter shut and Penelope rose gently from the rocking chair. She began to walk over to the crib and kissed her daughter's forehead. "Sweet dreams, Baby Doll," she murmured softly, gently laying Ellie in the crib. She smiled lovingly down at the sleeping baby and turned on the baby monitor. On her way out she shut the light off.

Once the door to the nursery was closed, Penelope rubbed her forehead tiredly and started for her bedroom. Derek was still gone on a case that the team had gotten a week ago and she'd been pulling double duty with Ellie for two days. Fran had been called back to Chicago part way through and now she would be by herself. But she loved every minute with her daughter. Going back to work was going to be hard after her maternity leave was over.

As she went into the bathroom, she started the shower water and waited until the whole room was full of steam to get into the water. She couldn't wait until Derek got home. She'd missed him. Yes, they talked every day, but she missed the feel of his skin against hers. And worse? She was able to have sex again; it had been a little over six weeks since she'd given birth to Ellie. Around four weeks in she'd begun to feel terribly needy. She wanted to jump Derek's bones _constantly_. But now that she could have sex, the team was out of town.

Just her luck.

"Mmm, someone's looking steamy."

Penelope gasped and turned around abruptly. Standing on the other side of the curtain with his head poking through into the shower was Derek and his face had a seductive smirk on it. She smiled and made a "come hither" motion with her finger. "So, are you just going to stand there and stare at me, or are you going to get your sexy ass in here?" she asked, lowering her voice to a soft husky tone.

"I'm going with the latter," he said, sliding his way into the shower, already completely naked.

As soon as he was completely in the shower Penelope threw herself at him and captured his lips in hers. "Do you know how much I missed you?" she murmured against his lips. "I have been nothing but horny since you left."

He laughed and held her against his body, kissing her with a ferocity that couldn't be harnessed. She moaned against his mouth and clung to him for dear life. Moving one of her hands from his shoulder, she slid it down to his groin and ran her hand up and down his thick length. He groaned. Breaking the kiss, he backed her up against the steam covered walls and growled in her ear, "God, I missed you."

Penelope laughed. "I missed you more, Baby Boy," she moaned as he slid her up the wall and she wrapped her legs around his hips. He slid into her and a loud cry escaped her lips. He recaptured her mouth and continued to thrust.

"Oh God, Baby Girl!" he groaned.

She kissed him again, digging her nails into his skin. One of his hands slid between their slick bodies and tweaked her clit, causing her to orgasm for the first time that evening. "Oh, Derek!" she screamed in ecstasy. "Faster! Harder!"

"Your wish is my command, Baby," he said in her ear, increasing the speed of his thrusts. His mouth latched onto her nipple and the scream that elicited from her mouth was so musical to his ears, he came apart in completion.

Both of them were panting uncontrollably and Penelope clung to Derek's body until she was standing unsteadily on her own feet. "I don't think I can ever go without you for six weeks again," she gasped against his chest. "I love you."

He kissed the top of her wet head. "I love you too, Baby Girl," he whispered. "Want me to finish cleaning you up?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She smiled seductively and traced a nail up his chest. "Only if I can wash you back," she murmured, nibbling on his lower lip.

He laughed and pulled her flush against him, kissing the life out of her.

XXXXX

"Wow," Penelope whistled as she collapsed on top of Derek. "I've always loved staying up all night and having mind blowing sex with you, but this...this is was different!"

Derek laughed and traced circles on the small of her back. "Well, it could be the six week gap between this one and the last time we had sex," he suggested.

She placed a gentle peck on his lips, before rolling off of him and cuddling up to his side. "I love you, Hot Stuff," she murmured happily. "I'm so glad you're home. Do you guys have another case tomorrow?" She was praying she would have him home for at least the next two days. She wouldn't be able to handle it without him for another two weeks. And she also knew Derek would want to stay home so he could spend time with Ellie.

He shook his head with a grin and said, "Nope. Strauss gave us three day leave."

With a squeal of delight, she held him tightly around the waist and grinned. "Thank God! Now you can spend some time with your baby," she said.

"I get to spend some time with _both_ my babies," he corrected her, tweaking her nose with his index finger. Taking her hand, he gave it a squeeze and added, "I love you Baby Girl. More than words can say."

Sitting up, she re-straddled his waist and captured his lips again. "And I love you too, Hot Stuff," she murmured.

Grinning wickedly, he rolled her under him and kissed her. "Good," he murmured.


	24. Epilogue

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**So we have come to the conclusion of this story :( I'm kind of sad! Thank you all for your kind reviews, favorites, and follows! I appreciate them always :) So, "Losing Everything" is still going and I'm going to be coming out with my very first AU story which will be a retelling of a very famous fairy tale, featuring our favorite duo :) So kick back and enjoy the conclusion to "Hate To Love You"!**

"So Daddy isn't going to be able to make it home for my birthday?" Ellie asked her mother with a pout and huge tears in her eyes.

Penelope knelt down as best she could with her belly being seven months pregnant. Taking both her five year old's hands in hers, she planted a kiss on her forehead and shook her head sadly. "Honey, Daddy really wanted to be here," she said sadly. "But the bad guys haven't been caught yet. He has to keep people safe." Though she was trying to explain it to her daughter in the best way possible, she was beyond annoyed with her...well, he wasn't yet her husband. They still hadn't gotten married yet. She still had her engagement ring on. There just wasn't a wedding.

"But he promised he'd be here!" The tears that she'd been holding at bay were now trickling down her cheeks. "Mama, he promised me!"

"I know, Baby Doll," she whispered, pulling Ellie into her arms for a hug. "And he wishes with all his heart that he would be here for your party."

Ellie cried against her mother's shoulder and Penelope knew she would be kicking her not husband's ass as soon as he got home.

XXXXX

Derek rubbed his face as he and JJ drove down the street in Philadelphia. He hated that a case had been called two days before his daughter's birthday. JJ looked over at him sympathetically and said, "Derek, why don't you just leave? I can get a flight booked for you."

He shook his head. "I already asked Hotch if I could," he said. "Strauss told him I needed to stay."

"That woman has a bug up her ass about something," she scoffed angrily. "I think you should be able to be home on your daughter's birthday."

"That's what I said!" he growled. "I want to be there so bad. I even offered to work overtime if she would let me go home."

Derek turned down the street where the police precinct was and stopped the SUV in front of the building. He slammed the car door shut. As he did, his cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID. It was Penelope. Sighing, he answered the phone. "Hey Baby Girl," he murmured as he and JJ headed into the precinct. "How's the day going?"

"Derek Morgan, I want to beat the shit out of you right now," Penelope snapped over the phone. "You are missing your daughter's fifth birthday for a case! I'm so making you sleep on the couch for the next week when you get home!"

He sighed. "Penelope, I want to be there," he said as he and JJ made their way into the precinct. "You know I do. But right now Strauss is telling Hotch that I'm not allowed to leave. I would be there if I could."

"Your daughter is sobbing her eyes out because her daddy isn't going to be here when she blows out the candles on her cake!" she screeched. "I am so mad at you I could scream!"

"Baby, what do you want me to do?" he asked. "Will you let me talk to Ellie?"

"She's so distraught right now she can hardly speak! And your son is currently kicking up a storm in my belly, so I can't talk to you either! Goodbye Derek!" Then the phone went dead.

Derek gritted his teeth in frustration and shoved his phone back into his pocket. He knew Penelope was right. He was the worst father in the world. As he stomped into the precinct, he ran into Reid. "Oh! Hello Morgan!" he said. Seeing the look on Derek's face, he raised an eyebrow. "Are you okay? You look really upset."

"No, Reid," he snapped. "I'm not okay! It's my daughter's birthday and fucking Strauss won't let me go home so I can be there for her! I'm getting sick of this! Penelope is too. I swear to God I think she'll get so sick of me that she'll leave."

Reid pulled Derek by his arm and pulled him into a side room. "Listen," he said, digging into his messenger bag. "I got this for you." He presented an envelope to Derek. Derek opened it and his eyes went wide. He looked up at Reid once more and his mouth dropped open.

"Is this a -"

"Plane ticket," Reid answered. "Yes. You leave in two hours." Seeing that Morgan was looking hesitant, he shook his head. "You _need_ to go see your daughter. It's her birthday. You shouldn't be away on a case on her birthday. Ellie's only going to turn five once." He smiled and gave him a wink. "So you go catch that plane."

Derek opened his mouth then closed it. Nodding once, he grabbed his jacket once more and headed for the door again.

XXXXX

Penelope was lighting the candles on Ellie's cake while her daughter was sitting in the dining room with her Fran, Sarah, and Desiree. Taking a deep breath, she started for the kitchen. Fran had turned the lights off and all the women in the room were wearing party hats while Ellie had on a small tiara. Everyone had started to sing "Happy Birthday" and Penelope put the cake down on the table in front of her daughter.

She felt sorry for Derek for missing this.

As they were singing though, a figure came into the dining room and Penelope's eyes went wide. Tears of joy filled her eyes and a smile spread over her face. Derek grinned at her and snuck up behind Ellie's chair. As they finished singing the song, Penelope smiled at her daughter and murmured, "Blow out the candles, Baby Doll and make a wish!"

Ellie sighed. "I just wish Daddy was here," she said. Then she blew out her candles.

Desiree, Sarah, and Fran were all grinning and Penelope gasped. "Honey! I think your wish came true," she said happily.

"Mommy, what are you talking about?" Ellie asked with a confused frown. "Daddy's not here."

"Oh, really?" Derek said with a smile.

Ellie turned around with shock on her face and jumped to her feet, throwing herself into her father's arms. "Daddy! You came home!"

Kissing Ellie's forehead, she said, "Of course I did, Baby Doll. I didn't want to miss your birthday so I came home."

"I'm so glad you did!" she cried happily.

"You ready for some cake and presents?" Penelope asked with a smile.

Ellie nodded and smiled vigorously. "Ready Mama!"

XXXXX

"Sleep tight, Baby Doll," Derek whispered, pulling up the covers to tuck Ellie in. He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I love you."

"Love you too," Ellie yawned.

Derek smiled down at his daughter and made his way out of her room. Outside in the hallway Penelope was waiting with a smile on her face and her hands resting on her enormous belly. "Oh, Derek," she whispered as he put his arms around her. "How did you come home?"

"I said 'fuck you' to Strauss," he said, kissing her softly. "Well, sort of. I didn't say anything directly to her." He sighed. "There will be some repercussions for it."

She touched his face. "You really are the best father in the world," she murmured. "You gave up working on a case for your daughter. That's love."

Putting both her hands on her pregnant belly, he rested his forehead against hers and said, "But not the best husband in the world. We need to make this official. It's time we set a date for this wedding."

"As long as I'm with you, I don't care if we never get married," she said. Looking up at him, she winked. "But I sure wouldn't mind."

Pulling her against him and kissing her fiercely, he said, "Let's set a date."

"Yes," she laughed. "Let's."


	25. Epilogue 2

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of this brilliant television show :*(**

**So I had several requests to write a second epilogue to "Hate To Love You" from several people. So here it is :) Another epilogue...and I think you might like how it goes! It'll be short and sweet :)**

_Two Months Later_

"I feel like I'm about ready to pop," Penelope said as she was helped into her wedding dress.

JJ smirked. "You know, I heard Derek telling Rossi that Hotch that he thinks you're incredibly hot while you're pregnant," she said with a wink. "You know, Will never had an obscene amount of sex with me when I was pregnant with Henry. I get the feeling getting out and dressed like a normal person, my fool fiancee drags me back in and takes me against the wall!"

"You know, I see you two being that couple who still has it going on when you're seventy," JJ snickered. "All finished back here." She patted Penelope gently on the back. "The corset is all finished."

"Thanks Jayje," she said. Her baby kicked a few times and she groaned. "This little boy is such a kicker. Ellie was never this bad when I was pregnant with her."

Pulling her best friend into a hug, JJ murmured, "It'll be okay. You'll not even notice the kicking as you're walking down the aisle. Derek will distract you."

"I sure hope so," she said, wincing as another kick came from her belly. "Where's Ellie at? Do you know?

JJ smiled. "I think she's with Blake right now," she said, leading her out of the room where the two of them had been getting ready. She grabbed their bouquets off of the table in the hallway and handed Penelope's to her. "Oh, there's Blake at the end of the hall." She started waving her flowers in the air. "Blake!"

Blake turned around. She was holding Ellie's hand. Smiling, she waved back. "Hey JJ, Garcia," she said.

Ellie smiled widely. "Mama!" She ran towards her mother and wrapped her arms around her legs.

"Hey sweetie," Penelope murmured. "I would lean down and hug you, but I can't right now. My belly is too big."

"When is my baby brother going to be born, Mama?" Ellie asked. "I miss being able to hug you."

Penelope laughed. "I miss hugging you too," she said. "But we have to go walk down the aisle. You're walking with me and Uncle Dave."

Ellie twirled around in her small pink dress and grinned. "I can't wait to hug you again," she chirped, taking her mother's hand.

XXXXX

"You sure she's coming down the aisle, man?" Derek asked Reid frantically. He loosened his bow tie slightly and cleared his throat. "She was really upset when I almost missed Ellie's birthday and I just -"

Reid smacked Derek over the back of his head. "Morgan, shut up," he said. "You were also put on two weeks, unpaid leave and told Strauss to suck it. I'm pretty sure she was fine with that. She loves you. Plus, she's about to pop with your second infant. I'd say she's planning on coming down the aisle."

Derek turned to look Reid and said, "You just hit me!"

"You deserved it," Reid said with a smirk. "It's payback for all those years ago when Garcia got shot and you hit me while you were telling her you were going to spank her." He tapped his chin. "What is that thing you always tell me? Oh right! Paybacks are a bitch!"

The quartet that JJ had found and booked the week before started playing Canon in D and Morgan lost his chance to give a snappy retort. JJ, Emily, and Blake came down the aisle in their bridesmaids dresses. Then came Rossi and Penelope with Ellie holding her mother's hand. All of his worries then went out the window. Penelope came walking down the aisle towards him with a broad grin on her face. As they reached the end of the aisle, Ellie went and threw her arms around Derek's legs. He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "I love you, sweetie," he whispered.

Ellie grinned toothily. "Love you, too, Daddy!" she said before going over to sit on Fran's lap.

Rossi smiled and kissed Penelope's cheek before handing her hands to Derek. Penelope smiled at Derek and whispered, "Hey Hot Stuff!"

"How you doing, Baby Girl?" he whispered back. "You look a little tense."

She gave him a strained smile. "I'm doing good," she said. "Little guy is kicking up a storm that's all."

The officiant started the ceremony and when he pointed to Derek and said, "Derek and Penelope have written their own vows to speak to each other. So now Derek is going to say his."

Derek took a deep breath and smiled. "Baby Girl, I love you more than words can say. You complete me in ways that no one else can and I want to spend the rest of my life with you and Ellie and this little guy and the other two children we're going to have." He laughed and used his thumb to wipe her tears away from her cheeks. "So with this ring, I give you my heart, my love, and my life."

The officiant motioned for Penelope to speak her vows. Inhaling sharply, she murmured, "Hot Stuff, I don't know how to express my love to you with words." She paused and closed her eyes for a moment before starting again shakily. He tilted his head to the side as if to ask if she was okay and she nodded in response. "I'm never happier than when I'm with you and Ellie and..." Her voice trailed off and she visibly winced.

"Baby, are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded and gave him an uneasy smile. "Yeah," she said. "I think I'm in labor though."

Derek's eyes went wide. "Oh my God!" he cried. "We need to get you to the hospital!"

Penelope shook her head. "We just need to finish this," she panted. "Then we can get going. Okay! So..."

"Baby, we need to -"

"No, no!" she said. "With this ring, I give you my heart, my love, and my life." When she finished, she clapped her hands together and turned to the officiant with a huge smile. "Okay! Let's wrap this up! I'm having a baby here!"

With a nervous smile, the officiant said, "So by the power vested in me by the state of Virginia, I pronounce you husband and wife. Derek, you may kiss your bride."

Hurriedly, Penelope grabbed Derek's face and pulled him into a kiss. The small crowd of people in their audience clapped and she smiled up at Derek. "Time to go have this baby," she panted.

He nodded. "Let's go then," he said, pulling her by the hand and down the aisle.

XXXXX

_Several Hours Later_

"Mrs. Morgan, here's your baby boy," the nurse said, handing over Penelope and Derek's son who she'd just cleaned off. She handed the blue gurgling bundle to Penelope. "He looks just like you, Mr. Morgan."

Derek grinned broadly as Penelope held their newborn son. "Oh, look at him," Penelope cooed. She stroked her new baby son's cheek and murmured, "He's so beautiful."

"Someone came to visit!" Fran Morgan sang out.

"Mama!" Ellie came skipping into the room and she threw herself into Derek's open arms. He picked her up and kissed her cheek. "Hi Daddy," she said. "Is that my baby brother?" She pointed at her mother and the baby she was holding.

Fran came up next to them and nodded. "That's your baby brother," she said. "Have you named him yet?" she added, glancing at Derek.

"Not yet," Penelope murmured, looking up at her mother in law. She smiled at her daughter. "Hi sweetie," she added, patting the spot next to her on the bed. "Do you want to meet your brother?"

Ellie nodded vigorously and motioned for Derek to put her down so she could go sit on the bed next to Penelope and her unnamed brother. She stared at her brother in wonder. "He's so cute, Mama!" she squealed. "He needs a name. I can't just call him 'he' for the rest of his life. That's just silly."

"Well, we did have a few names in mind for him," Derek said, smiling at Fran. The two of them sat in the chairs next to Penelope's bed. "We liked the name Liam."

Penelope kissed the top of her daughter's head and asked, "What do you think of that, Ellie? Liam sound good to you?"

"That sounds perfect, Mama!" Ellie said, leaning her head against her mother's shoulder.

Derek grinned and put his arm around his mother. "Liam Morgan it is," he said. His eyes met Penelope's and she winked at him. Flashing her his thousand watt grin, he mouthed, _I love you._

_I love you too_, she mouthed back with a wink, feeling like she was on cloud nine to be surrounded by her family.


End file.
